Another Life II
by burmafrd
Summary: Getting used to immortal life is one thing; all the rest is not easy as well. All due homage to the creators of Highlander and Roswell, this is just for fun
1. Chapter 1

Summary: Liz is getting used to being Immortal, but there are bumps on the road and a big surprise to come.

Liz Parker walked down the stairs of the alien-themed family diner called the Crashdown and pondered the IRONY of everything. Here she was dressed in a tacky "alien" outfit complete with antenna, about to work her shift as a waitress. The tourists that flocked to Roswell seemed to eat it right up—no matter how tacky or cheesy. And her boyfriend was a real honest to god Alien (or more to the point Human/Alien hybrid). Not that she had any room to throw stones, really, being as she was not completely human. Almost certainly Earth born and bred, just not completely human. As in Immortal—which was cool in a way since you could heal almost any injury, and you did not age. Not so good since she was 16 when she "died" for the first time and became Immortal—she would not age, but being 16 for possibly centuries or even millennia was not so great. Add to that, not being able to have children, and watching all those you knew and loved growing old and dying, which also meant that she would not be able to stay in any one spot for very long without people noticing the not aging part. Looking 16 was not such a cool thing either when you came right down to it. Then there was the "Game." One of the real downsides of Immortality is that what made you so, your "Quickening", could be transferred to another immortal if you lost your head—literally, as in getting it cut off with a sword. Liz had had to defend herself against a headhunter, an Immortal that lived to take heads and quickenings. Liz now understood how some could get addicted to getting quickenings, having now experienced it. The legend had it that one day, only a few Immortals would be left, and they would have what was called the "Gathering", where the last of them would battle until only one would be left, supposedly getting all the quickenings that had ever been, possibly giving that person enough power to rule the world. Liz had her doubts about all of that; being very practical and scientifically minded, she had seen the holes in that logic. There must have been numerous Immortals over the years caught in avalanches, trapped in ships sunk to the bottom of oceans, beheaded when no immortal was around to get his or her quickening, and so on. So what about those cases? No one had any answers. Not Duncan McLeod, the Immortal that had found and trained her, nor Methos, supposedly the oldest Immortal still alive at 5000 or so. So Liz had some skepticism about the game and the supposed "Prize." That, to her, did not sound all that great—you were the last Immortal alive—big deal. No matter what powers you might gain.

Liz waved to Michael Guerin, who shared this shift with her as the cook,and with Maria DeLuca her best friend. Maria and Michael definitely had some sparks going on—though sometimes with Mt. St. Maria, it was a lot more than that. She looked over and was not surprised that Max Evans was in his usual booth in her section; like clockwork on any day she was on duty, he was there. She smiled at her boyfriend as she walked up to his booth.

"Same as usual, Max?"

Max Evans smiled at Liz. No matter how often they now saw each other, whenever he saw Liz for the first time, he felt his heart beat faster. He'd had a huge crush on Liz Parker for years, and only recently had the courage to try and start something. It had turned out to be even better than he had dreamed; not only was she everything he had hoped for, but she had also opened up the world for him and his fellow hybrids to actually be part of life instead of hiding and slinking around. He looked past her at Maria and Michael, who were, as usual, sparing. It seemed to be something they both loved to do considering how often they did it, though both would deny it vigorously. Even his sister Isabel, the notorious Ice Queen of Roswell High, had thawed and warmed up to Liz, and was even starting to date Liz's best friend Alex. Their lives had gotten so much better in the last 6 months that the change was breathtaking. Of course, finding out that Liz was Immortal had been a huge jolt; then Liz telling him she had figured out that he was a type of Alien/Human Hybrid was just as big. Then Liz having to train with a sword to protect herself from other Immortals, and just a couple of months ago having to fight, kill, and then behead one that was after her own head had been as far out there as anything Alien had ever been. The Quickening that she had then gotten had been one of the most frightening things he had ever seen. Luckily, after that, things had settled down, and it had been pretty quiet these last 3 months, which Max was quite happy about. He did not know that everything was about to change.

Liz was taking a break; Max had just left after the diner had started to fill up, getting near noon on a Saturday was about as busy as it would get. Agnes had finally shown up and had thus been sent to first give Maria a break, then Liz. Liz decided to run upstairs and check on the computer program that she had running for a project she had been working on as regards searching for anything Immortal related on the Internet. She had modified a search engine, with Alex's help, to be a little more picky and precise so as to dig deeper than normal, and at the same time be more particular about what it came up with. She was just heading for the stairs when her father called to her from the back entrance.

"Liz, if you are on break right now, I need some help unloading the truck with our supplies for the week."

Liz groaned but headed his way. It was not fun, but it had to be done. She had to remember to not lug more than her share—her constant workouts had made her a LOT stronger then she had been, or looked. Being Immortal also meant keeping a low profile and lying to everyone with a cover story when needed. That was one part of being Immortal that she really hated. She went out the back door and saw her father trying to pull out a propane tank—used for the outdoor grill on holidays when the demand was just too much for the stoves in the kitchen. It was a big 100 gallon tank and not light at all. She hurried over and helped him take it off the truck. It was stuck on a piece of plastic sheathing that would be used to protect the grill when not in use. She was reaching over to move the sheathing out of the way when it came loose and hit her arm. Liz jumped back automatically grabbing her arm.

"Liz, are you ok? Here let me look at it!" said her father.

Liz realized that she had been cut rather badly, and that her quickening had already started to close the wound. But before she could try and get away, her father had grabbed her arm and was staring at it. He stared at the blue sparks swirling around the cut that despite the blood was getting smaller and smaller and finally disappeared while leaving no scar and nothing but the blood to show that anything had happened.

Jeff Parker had never seen anything like it. His little girl had had a bad cut on her arm, and it had just healed up and gone away. What looked like blue sparks or lightning or something had swirled around the cut, and it had just healed. Only the blood remained as any sign of anything. He shook his head and continued to look at her arm, which showed no sign that there had ever been a scar.

Liz closed her eyes for a moment. She had wanted to tell her parents ever since it happened, but that meant telling them the whole story, and she had just not wanted to do that. Well, now she had no choice. She reached over with her other arm and caught her father's arm getting his attention. He looked up at her with dazed eyes, clearly in shock. She pulled him away from the truck, into the Crashdown, and up the stairs to the apartment where they lived. She knew her mother was upstairs working on the books, and figured this was as good a time as any to get it over with.

Jeff allowed his daughter to pull him up the stairs and into their apartment. He was still trying to figure out what he had seen and what it meant. He sat down in the chair in the living room and watched his daughter go over to the small room off of it that housed their little office.

"Mom, could you come out here? I have something rather important to tell you and dad."

Nancy Parker got up and followed her daughter—this had to be pretty important, and Liz was not one to exaggerate such things. She found her husband sitting in the chair, rather white faced and looking dazed. She rushed over to him.

"Honey, what's wrong. You look like you are in shock. Should I call an ambulance?"

"Mom, he is ok. Just a little shocked at something that happened just now, and that is part of what I need to talk to you about."

Nancy looked at her daughter and noticed the blood on her arm. She looked up at her face and saw a grim and determined expression on it. Still holding his hand, she sat down next to Jeff.

Liz took a deep breath, and then realized that her break was almost over.

"Hang on a second, I have to tell Maria that it will be a while before I get back to work."

Liz rushed down the stairs and into the kitchen. Luckily, Maria was there having one of her endless jousts with Michael.

"Maria, I am going to be late getting back from break. Dad saw something, and I am going to have to tell him."

Maria DeLuca looked at Liz with big eyes, then noticed the blood on her arm. Putting two and two together, she just nodded her head. Michael had also seen the blood, but being more practical, he'd grabbed a towel, ran some water over it, and handed it to Liz.

"Here—don't want anyone else seeing that and asking questions."

"Thanks, Michael. Hopefully this will not take too long."

Liz rushed back up the stairs, wiping her arm along the way. She found her parents just sitting where she had left them. Though her father was looking better as he gradually got over the shock. Well partially—this next part was not going to be easy.

Taking another deep breath, she sat down in the chair facing her parents.

"Mom, I was helping dad unload the truck when I cut my arm on some plastic sheathing for the outdoor grill. It was a pretty bad cut. Dad grabbed my arm, and what he saw is why he is in shock."

Liz then showed her mother her unscarred arm.

Nancy looked at her arm and shook her head. "Liz you were not cut—there is no scar and… wait a minute—there WAS blood on your arm!" She shook her head again and looked up at Liz.

Liz proceeded to partially unbutton her uniform and showed her parents her stomach.

"Just like there is no scar from the bullet that hit me 6 months ago."

Jeff and Nancy looked at her smooth unmarked stomach and blinked. Jeff was coming out of it a little, and said, "What about that scar that you had before. Where is it?"

Liz got up, went into her room, came back with something, and handed it to Jeff.

Jeff and Nancy looked at the plastic something and realized it was a scar—that was what Liz had been using to make it look like the wound that had been made when she was shot and the bullet removed.

"A Hollywood makeup artist made that for me so as to keep people from asking questions. I have not been wearing it for quite a while since people no longer ask about it."

Jeff looked up at his daughter "Why? Liz what is going on? You healed a bad cut that should have taken stitches and a couple of weeks to heal in only a couple of minutes. How is this possible?"

Liz took a deep breath and plunged ahead.

"When I was hit that day, the bullet lodged next to the right renal artery. It shifted and nicked it, and I bled out and died. An airhead nurse messed up, and the monitors were not working right, so no one noticed. I woke up a couple of hours later feeling fine—and out of curiosity, I unwrapped my bandage, and found that I had no wound—and that the stitches were just laying on the bandage. I was all confused and frightened until Duncan McLeod came by and explained everything."

Nancy frowned. "Duncan McLeod? The director of the clinic you were in?"

Liz nodded. "He actually used that as a cover. He and some friends arranged for me to be sent to Albuquerque to make sure no one asked any questions or wanted to look at my non-existent wound. It was all part of keeping my secret."

Jeff, almost afraid of the answer, asked anyway. "What secret is that?"

"I am immortal. I will never age beyond what I am now. I could live to be thousands of years old, but I will never look any older. Just about any wound that I get will be healed about as fast as you just saw. There are a few thousand at most of us around the world. We have to keep a low profile since, if it was found out, we would be in labs being poked, prodded and probably dissected along the way."

Jeff and Nancy just sat there. Liz went into the kitchen and came out with a steak knife. She showed it to both of them, then cut her arm. Nancy gasped as the cut healed right before her eyes, blue sparks swirling around it until it was gone—leaving no scar and just the blood. Jeff looked then closed his eyes and sat back. Nancy did the same. For a few minutes, there was silence.

Liz knew that she should tell them the whole story including the game but decided that enough was enough. They did not need any more shocks.

Nancy looked at her and asked "How?"

"No one knows, Mom. All immortals are foundlings. No one has ever found a mother or father of an Immortal. We just appear as babies. Then are adopted and live a normal life until our first death, which triggers our Immortality. Why this is and when it started, how it happens, no one knows. Each Immortal, if he gets to within about 50 or 100 feet, can feel another immortal. Really old immortals can feel the Pre-Immortals; they just have a much weaker buzz as they call it. Duncan happened to be driving through Roswell just after the shooting. The ambulance carrying me passed him close enough for him to feel my buzz. Duncan is one of the really good guys in the Immortal community, and he always makes sure a newbie like me is taken care of. I was very lucky he was around then. I do not know what I would have done without him."

Jeff had recovered somewhat. "I can understand why you have to hide this. You are right about what could happen to you otherwise. But why didn't you tell us before now? You have known about this for almost 6 months?"

"Because I was trying to figure out how to tell you. And I did not want you to start treating me differently. I wanted to be just what I was before—just a small town girl working in her parents' diner. Only Maria, Michael, Max and Alex, oh and Isabel too know about it. They got told because I needed help, and it just came out with them. Even now, I can tell that they look at me differently. I really did not want that to happen with my parents."

As one Jeff and Nancy got up and hugged Liz.

Nancy: "From the minute we found you out in the alley, you have been our little girl. Nothing will ever change that, Honey."

Jeff: "You have been my little girl always, and that means always, Honey."

For just a few minutes, Liz Parker felt all was right with her world—no matter what may come.

Liz was still deciding when to tell her parents about the game when she got a call from Duncan. He wanted her to come up to Seacouver for a few days to train, and also to meet some other Immortals that might be of help to her someday. He made a point of reminding her that sparing is a very necessary part of being ready for a challenge—just training and doing her KATA was not enough. Liz told him about her parents finding out part of her secret, and that that part had gone pretty well. Telling them about the Game would almost certainly not go down as easily. Duncan told her that while it was up to her, letting them know the truth would be easier for her in the long run. Not having to hide so much, and not having to sneak around would be much better, Liz knew. She was just worried about them over-reacting.

Liz decided to ask Maria, Alex, and Max for advice. Thinking it, over she also decided to see if Isabel and Michael wanted to be part of it. While Maria and Alex still had no idea about the aliens, Liz thought that having them all together might help them in their budding relationships. Certainly watching Maria and Michael go at it was pretty entertaining. Michael had shown surprising ability to answer Maria with pretty sharp quips, and of course Maria was always armed and dangerous.

She started with Maria that afternoon after they finished their Sunday shift. As they were in the breakroom changing out of the alien garb, she approached her.

"Maria, I got a call from Duncan this morning. He wants me to come up to Seacouver and train for a few days. He made the point that sparing is very important to being ready for a challenge, and he also had some people there that he wants me to meet that might help out in the future. There is no way I can do this without my parents knowing. With grandma out of the country on her latest dig, I cannot get her to give me an excuse. So I figure now is the time to tell them about the game."

Maria stopped changing and looked at Liz.

"This is a big one chica, probably a lot worse than telling them about being Immortal. They have most of the advantages in mind—now you have to give them the big downer. Your dad especially will freak."

"I know. He will probably want to bundle me off to a convent to keep me 'safe,' despite the fact that I would not last a month like that—just no way at all."

Maria snorted. "I have tried to imagine you in a convent, and it always cracks me up. Not many people realize what a sharp tongue you have, and while you are certainly no party girl, there is no way in the world or anywhere else you could stand a place like that for long."

"Yeah, anyway, I want you, Alex, and Max, and I was also thinking of inviting Isabel and Michael as well. You are all my friends and know my secret, and I figure hearing from all possible points of view is a good idea."

Maria pondered that for a while. "Well Alex and Max are a must, of course. I guess Isabel might have something to contribute, but I doubt Michael will say anything other than keep your secret as long as you can."

Liz grinned. "Just do not want to give Michael any credit at all, do you? You never know, he might surprise you."

"SURE. And an alien will walk right in the front door of the Crashdown today."

Maria could not understand what was so funny about that that Liz almost fell over laughing.

Max was in as usual that afternoon to see Liz. It was almost like you could set your watch. Liz actually was quietly very flattered to be the object of affection like that, though she would not admit it to anyone else. Max never did anything halfway, and she liked that since she was the same way herself. This time, she was not on shift, so she took him upstairs to the balcony. Luckily, both her parents were out at the moment picking up supplies. They sat down and looked over at the view which was not bad… the mountains were off in the distance, and it was a sunny day as usual.

"Max, I got a call from Duncan this morning, and he wants me to come up to Seacouver for a few days to train and spar. It's important that I keep sharp since you never know when a challenge might happen. And you really can't stay ready without sparing. So I am going to have to tell my parents about the game in order to get permission to go. I want all the gang, you, Maria, Alex, Isabel, and Michael, to meet me somewhere so we can talk about it. I figure feedback from as many sources as possible would be a good thing before I talk to my parents."

Max thought about that for a moment. "Sounds like a good idea. But why do I think you want everyone together for another reason?"

Liz smiled. Max already knew her too well. "I want the group to get to know each other better so we can all get along better. Especially with the emerging relationships that are forming. Sooner or later, Alex and Maria are going to have to know about the three of you, and this sort of thing happening more often might help out when that time comes."

Max nodded. That made sense to him. He was not sure if Maria and Michael would make it long term, their 'relationship' was pretty volatile. Alex and Isabel? Not sure there either, but he had a hunch his sister liked Alex a lot more then she let on. And he had to admit the thought of more people knowing their secret was a little scary on one hand, but on the other, being able to relax and be open with others outside their small group would be so much better.

"I will talk to Is tonight, and you can ask Michael. I think it would be a good idea."

Liz went over to the clinic after Max left. She and Cynthia had been dancing around a little about what Cynthia was and how it affected Liz for the last few months with nothing really being said or decided. Liz felt in her bones that there was a lot more to this then curiosity, but also knew that if it was what she THOUGHT it was, then secrecy was a very important thing on THEIR side as well. She had decided to confront Duncan when she got to Seacouver, but she had a hunch he had been sworn to secrecy as well. She thought that Joe Dawson was involved with it as well, but knew he would not tell her either. This frustrated Liz, but she figured that what was was, and sometimes you just have to accept it.

Cynthia was manning the front desk that Sunday afternoon as a favor to Cecilia who had a date. Cynthia was pondering her own currently dateless life rather sadly when Liz Parker walked in the front door. Now this was unusual since Liz as far as she knew had not been in the building since Duncan McLeod had gone back to Seacouver. The apartment remained empty since Duncan had decided to keep it just in case. There was no point in using the training room without someone to spar with. Cynthia had wondered some about how Liz was going to stay sharp without someone to help out. This worried her some since she knew that a headhunter could show up anytime, even here in Roswell.

Liz walked in the front door and was pleased to see Cynthia at the front desk—now she would not have to look around for her.

"Hey Cynthia, how goes the covert surveillance?" Liz just had to tweak her some on that.

Cynthia shook her head. Liz was like a dog with a juicy bone on this subject. She knew that somehow Cynthia was supposed to be keeping an eye on her, and sooner or later would figure it all out. But Joe had been firm that Cynthia was not to tell her about the watchers. So they had danced around the subject for the last few months. Luckily it had not been a big problem to their friendship. After all, who knew better then Liz about keeping secrets?

"Well this is a first. What's up?"

"I will probably be going up to Seacouver for a few days soon to train with Duncan. He has been on me about needing more than just practice and working out—I need to actually spar to keep sharp. So I am going to have to tell my parents the part about the Game. They already know about Immortals—just not that part."

Cynthia was intrigued—she had not thought that Liz had told her parents yet. "How did they find out—or did you just tell them."

Liz shrugged. "I was helping my dad unload the truck when a plastic sheath cut my arm, and he saw it happen—and then the healing. I figured that was as good a time as any to tell them both, and I did. It went OK. But now they have to find out about the real downside of being Immortal—the Game."

Cynthia was thinking about her next entry into Liz's Chronicle. This was a fairly big thing and would make it an important entry. She looked up at Liz.

"So how well do you think they will take finding out about the Game? And are you going to tell them about your first challenge?"

"My dad will probably freak. Want me to go into a convent. That is when I will tell him I have already fought once. Mom will probably be a little better about it. But whatever, it's not going to be a fun time."

Cynthia nodded. "It's not supposed to be. For every good thing there is almost always a downside. Balance and all that."

"Yeah. Sometimes balance sucks."

Cynthia grinned at Liz. "So cogently put. Thanks for letting me know."

Liz grinned back. "So will I be seeing you in Seacouver?"

Cynthia smiled slowly. "Maybe. Maybe not."

After Liz left, Cynthia called Joe Dawson.

"Joe? This is Cynthia from Roswell. Looks like Liz will be heading your way for a few days pretty soon to train with Duncan McLeod. She just let me know."

Joe Dawson sat and thought for a moment. "Liz really is pushing to find out about us isn't she?"

"I would not call it pushing—but she is persistent. She knows that I am keeping an eye on her, and she knows it's not because of Duncan. She is way too smart to think it's any coincidence that I am around so much. And I am pretty sure that long ago, she figured out that we were not all beholden to Duncan McLeod, and that is not why we helped out. So she has to figure out something else is involved. Now figuring out our name and how long we have been around and so forth is not going to happen easily if at all. But the main purpose and reason I think she already knows. She tweaks at me about it every now and then. But at the same time, it does not seem to be a big concern for her. She seems to accept it. It's just in her nature to solve puzzles and figure things out, and we are one of them that she wants to figure out."

Joe nodded to himself. That made sense. Cynthia seemed to have a good grasp at what made Liz Parker tick, and that is what a good watcher did.

"No, I don't think you need to come. She is going to be around Duncan full-time, and Richie is there as well, so there will be watchers around. They will make copies and send their notes to you about anything she does out of the ordinary while she is there."

Cynthia shrugged to herself. She pretty much thought that would be the answer, but she had to try.

"About what I figured. She will probably be looking for me, and when she does not see me after a day or so, that might puzzle her some. Or she might start looking around to see if anyone else is watching."

Joe nodded to himself. "Very Likely. I will put a bug in Richie's Watcher's ear about keeping a lower profile than normal. Since Richie also knows about the Watchers, he is pretty casual about it. So I am willing to bet that his watcher may be getting sloppy. I will put some time in observing myself in the next few days—can't let our people get sloppy—things can happen—bad things."

Cynthia grimaced as she put down the phone and stared at the wall. While it did not happen often, occasionally nasty immortals spotted their watcher and reacted badly—for the watcher. That is why they were supposed to see and not be seen. Unfortunately with Immortals that were constantly on the move, it was hard to do. Those that stayed in one place like Duncan McLeod were easier—you got used to seeing the same people around when you stayed for a while. She actually had it about as easy as a watcher could get it—her Immortal knew that she was keeping an eye on her and had no problem with it. Cynthia wondered what it would be like to have to move around a lot and never stay in one place for more than a few weeks or months. She did not know if she would like that kind of life. Her time as Liz Parker's watcher was supposed to be only while she stayed in Roswell, but she had a hunch that Joe Dawson was looking at making it permanent. In one respect, that was fine with Cynthia—she really liked Liz, and it would not be as lonely as it could be because they knew each other already. The downside of that was that Liz could lose her head at any time to a better fighter, and Cynthia really did not know how well she would be able to handle that if it happened. She now could understand how some Watchers crossed the line—they were human after all. It was very difficult after time to not identify with your immortal—especially when they were a good person like Liz was.

They had decided to meet where Liz had fought Felicia Rising. They all knew how to get there and there was no one around. It was only early October so the weather at night was still pretty warm, and they would not be there all that long anyway.

Max had picked up Michael, and Isabel had come with him. He had been a little surprised that she so readily agreed to come, and told her that. Isabel's answer had surprised him a little.

"I think it's a good idea. Ever since this all started, I have been thinking about how we cut ourselves off from everyone once we figured out we were different. It was the smart thing to do, but we did not have to go as far as we did. And I admit being able to talk with people and not worry so much about things would be a good thing. And Liz is right—sooner or later, if we stay together, and I think we will, Alex and Maria will have to know. I used to think that Maria was too scatterbrained to trust, and I now realize that that was a mistake. And Alex is pretty sharp and quiet, so there is no worry there."

Max had smiled a little at that last part. He did not think that Isabel really realized how close she and Alex were getting. Alex had come to him for advice on that, and he had told him to keep it low key and calm—that was the best way to handle Isabel.

Liz, Maria and Alex had arrived first with some chairs and a cooler with drinks in it. They had just set up when Max's jeep arrived with him, Isabel and Michael.

Liz walked up to the jeep and kissed Max, and then smiled at Isabel and Michael.

"Come on over, we have chairs and drinks. And the weather is great."

Liz stood before them and let them know what was up.

"I was called by Duncan this morning, and he wants me to come to Seacouver for a few days to train and spar. Also he wants me to meet some people he thinks might help out if the need is ever there. I am going to have to tell my parents about the game, and one of the reasons I wanted everyone here is to hear suggestions about how to do it and what to say. I also wanted to get everyone together since I think it's a good idea to do this on occasion. We are all connected in one way or another, and it is easier when you do not have to worry about someone over hearing something we don't want out there."

So they talked it over. Isabel was for being straight up with them, and to tell them as quickly and concisely as possible. The irony of that struck both Max and Michael, but she pointedly ignored their smirks. Alex agreed with Isabel (big surprise there, everyone else thought) about doing it as straightforward as she could. Maria chimed in that Liz should have her sword out and show them she already knew what she was doing with it. Michael thought that she should not tell them about Felicia Rising unless her father was really freaking out—and that of course could send him over the edge. Max agreed with Michael. Maria, who knew Liz's parents' better than any of the others, was very much of the opinion that the whole story needed to be told. They needed to know that no more surprises would be coming. Isabel thought that over and found herself agreeing with Maria; if you are going to tell it, tell it all.

Maria had set up some candles to keep the bugs away, but unfortunately it attracted something else.

A bat swooped down and almost hit Maria, who screamed and launched herself out of her chair. It came back, and Michael reacted instinctively—and blasted it.

For a moment after that happened everyone was frozen. Then Isabel groaned and slumped in her chair. Liz took a deep breath and went over to the shocked Maria and helped her up. She looked around and said.

"Well, Max, I guess it's going to happen sooner than I thought. The upside is that we are in a good place to do it."

Max looked at Isabel who glumly nodded. Michael was totally embarrassed at being the one that had outed them; especially considering he had always been the one that insisted on secrecy. So he just shrugged.

Alex had been flabbergasted and shocked. But he stood up, went over to Maria who was shaking a little, and gave her a hug. Then he went over to where he had been sitting next to Isabel, and said, "Ok, it's clear now that Liz is not the only one with a big secret. And she is right that here and now is as good a time as any. Though I can guess that Liz already knows. I can say for myself that any secret you have, I will keep just like I have kept Liz's secret; for now and always." He then reached over, took Isabel's hand, and squeezed it. She looked at him and took a deep breath, then squeezed back.

Liz stood up and took the floor. "OK guys, it's like this. The crash did happen. What happened to the other aliens, no one knows; but some pods that were on the ship were hidden where the Military was not able to find them. There they sat for almost 40 years before three 6-year-old children emerged and wondered away. Two of them were found by Phillip and Diane Evans and eventually adopted. The third was not so lucky and became part of the Foster Care system, which we all know sucks. The fact that no one was waiting for them to help or guide them at all argues that no other aliens are left or they are not around here. Also, if they had anyone watching them, that one surely would have done something about Michael's situation. They do not know much more than that. They found the pods last year in a cave, but there was nothing else there. No information or anything that would tell them why they are here or where they came from. They may never know. Each one of them has some similar powers, and each one of them has powers unique to that person. Michael as you can see is the one with the most power to blast, though they all can do it. Max can heal—but you have to be conscious for that to work, and that was why he could not help me that day—but I think it may have charged up my quickening since I revived so quickly and have a pretty strong quickening for a newbie Immortal. Isabel can enter people's dreams and sometimes control or interact with them. I have thought about it some, and think frankly that they need to practice more on their powers, and see if they have any that they have not discovered before. So that is one reason I am glad that you two now know. We can help them with that. I have been quietly searching the web to see what there is known about psychic powers, and with Alex's help, we can come up with a list of possibilities that they can try, and also try and figure out ways to help them train. I feel it's important that they be ready if something happens. You never know—there could be bad aliens around out there that might be looking for them. It seems clear to me that they were sent here to be hidden and allowed to grow up safely. But something went wrong—and whether it was an accident or sabotage, we may never know. But it's better to be on the safe side and be prepared."

Maria had gotten herself together and looked at Michael.

"Well I should have figured you were an alien from the beginning."

Michael snarked right back at her. "And that's gratitude for you. Next time, I will let the bat land in your hair."

They all laughed at that, and suddenly things looked like it would all work out.

Liz prepared herself for telling her parents about the Game by asking them to come out to the balcony. She let them know ahead of time that it was more of the Immortal stuff.

Jeff and Nancy came out on the balcony to find Liz going through what looked like an exercise or some kind of dance almost, but it was with a sword. She moved quickly and gracefully through a series of moves, and increased her speed through the exercise until at the end the sword was a blur that swished through the air.

Liz finished her KATA and walked over to where her mother and father were standing. She sat down with the sword in her lap as they, with some hesitation, sat down opposite her.

Nancy was the first to speak. "Where did you get that sword, Liz? That does not look like something easily found or inexpensive. And I know that you were doing an exercise with it—I recognized it from a documentary I saw a few years ago. You must have been doing this for a while to be that good. My question is why?"

Jeff had been very disturbed watching his daughter wield the sword with such obvious skill. Liz had said this was about Immortals. What could this mean? He needed to know.

"Liz, just spit it out. We know that this has something to do with you being an immortal. Just tell us."

Liz took a deep breath. "I did not tell you all about what it means to be an immortal. One other price we pay is that we cannot have children. Which is understandable—how horrible would it be to have children and watch them get old and die while you remained unchanged?"

Nancy reached over and held Liz's hand. She certainly knew that feeling of not being able to have children. Jeff closed his eyes in sadness. Then he opened them and asked her.

"But there is more, right?"

Liz nodded. "For as long as there have been immortals, there has been what is called by them the Game, and the Prize. The Prize is what you supposedly get from winning the game. The energy that keeps us from aging and heals our wounds is called the Quickening. There is only one way for an immortal to die permanently—by decapitation. If one Immortal beheads another, he gets that Immortal's quickening which strengthens his own. He also gains that Immortals knowledge, and the feeling of getting a Quickening is like apparently being on a drug high. There are some immortals who do nothing but go around trying to get quickening—addicts to that high. There are others just doing it to try and win the Game. The legend has it that when only a few immortals are left, they will all feel a pull to come together into what is called the Gathering. Then they will all fight until only one is left. That person will supposedly have all the quickenings of every Immortal who ever lived. Legend has it that this will give that person enough power to rule the world."

Jeff and Nancy sat there stunned by what they had just heard. Jeff looked at the sword his daughter was holding. He swallowed and looked at her.

"They fight with swords. And you are learning to fight with swords. Does that mean you have to go out and kill?"

Liz shook her head. "Most Immortals only fight if challenged. Only a small percentage are headhunters. Most of us just want to be left alone to live our long lives in peace. But we have to be ready to defend ourselves if challenged. That is what I have been doing from the first week after I was shot. Duncan trained me. First he had me wearing weights on my wrists and ankles to make me stronger. Then he had me running to increase my endurance. Then working out with a wooden practice sword, and then when my sword was finished, the real thing. He spared with me all the time he was here. He only left when he was satisfied that I was ready to defend myself."

Nancy head was swimming in confusion at what she had just been told. It was fantastic and horrible at the same time. Jeff sat there thinking. He looked at Liz.

"This challenge thing. How does it work? Are there rules, customs, and so on?"

"All fights must be one on one. There have been a few cases where cheating has happened, but not many, and those Immortals do not seem to last very long. Usually someone like Duncan takes care of them sooner or later. It is supposed to be just sword to sword, but once again, a few cheat and try and weaken their opponents by shooting them or using knives and the like. They also do not seem to last very long. Only a very tiny fraction are like that—even among the headhunters. There is one rule that no one will break. There must never be a fight on Holy Ground—and that means Holy to any religion. Legend has it—and this is one all Immortals believe no matter what—that the last time two Immortals fought on Holy Ground was in 79AD right outside the city of Pompeii."

Nancy looked up in shock. Jeff frowned, trying to remember why that sounded familiar. Nancy whispered, "You mean that fight is what caused Mt Vesuvius to erupt and bury Pompeii?"

Liz nodded. "It's an absolute belief in the Immortal Community."

Jeff was shaking his head. "That is just not possible. That is the most unbelievable thing I have heard yet, and that is saying something."

Liz was quiet for a minute. "So much about Immortals is shrouded in history and mystery and myth. Where do we come from? No one has ever identified the mother of any Immortal. And many have tried to find theirs or others. We just appear as babies. Never anything else. So maybe something else is involved—or should I say SOMEONE else."

Jeff and Nancy looked at each other then at their daughter. Their heads were still spinning.

Jeff had been thinking about what he had been told. "Liz, this part about Holy Ground? You said NO immortal will dare break that rule. Does that mean that anyone in a monastery or convent is safe?"

Liz had been waiting for that one. "As long as that Immortal never leaves the Holy Ground, yes. Of course, then you have to find one that accepts someone that will be around for hundreds of years. Which I understand is a little hard. And before this goes any further, there is NO way I am going into a convent."

Nancy was still holding her hand. "But Honey, is that not better than having to defend yourself and possibly lose your life, or have to take another?"

Liz sadly knew that she would have to tell all. "Kind of a moot point, Mom. I already have."

Jeff sat straight up in shock. Nancy gripped Liz's hand even harder as she stared at her daughter.

Liz knew it was now or never. "Remember when I went out to help Grandma? I asked her to call you with that as an excuse so that I could go away and train hard with Duncan for 4 days. A female headhunter had found out that Duncan was training a newbie and thought she could get an easy quickening. The irony of that was that Duncan was the one that found her when she first became Immortal during the end of WW2. He helped her and found her a trainer. No gratitude there at all. She showed up here, challenged me, and we fought outside of town. I won."

Jeff spoke very softly "You killed her? Took her head?"

"She would not have stopped coming after me. If I had let her live, she would have found other ways to get at me. I really had no choice. So I took her head and her quickening. From that, I found out she had been doing this for years—finding newbie Immortals and killing them. I got their memories—how scared they were. And she enjoyed their fear—taunting them before she took their heads. I stopped that. And I do not feel bad about it at all. I know I had no choice in the matter—she chose to come after me and lost. And I will do it again if I have to. Luckily Roswell is not a place many Immortals come through or care to get near. I guess all this alien stuff wigs them out. So odds are that I will not have to worry too much. BUT I have to train and be ready. Duncan called me yesterday and asked me to come out to him in Seacouver for a week to train and spar. He pointed out that I need to do this on occasion to stay sharp. And he is right."

Jeff and Nancy sat there and pondered what they had been told. Liz got up and showed them her hiding place for her sword. Then she walked over to them. "I am going inside. I know that you two need to talk this over."

For a long while they sat and thought, saying very little. What was there to say? Their daughter was part of something so big and so old. And would be, hopefully, long after they were gone.

Liz looked out the small window of the airliner as it set down in Seacouver. This was the first time she had ever flown, and it had been really interesting. Her parents had reluctantly agreed that coming here was what she had to do. Liz's sword was in a rifle case she had bought—it had gotten some interesting looks at the airport when she had opened it up. She explained that she was taking the sword which was a WW2 heirloom to someone in town to have it appraised. As good a story as any, she thought.

Duncan McLeod tried not to pace as he waited at the gate for Liz's plane to land. He knew that there was no reason to worry, but that was part of him, and he knew that it would not change. He looked up as the door opened and the passengers came out. Liz was one of the first ones out. She saw him right away as she felt his buzz and waved. Duncan smiled in relief and waved back. She bounced up to him.

"First time on a plane. I really enjoyed it. Now we just have to hope all my bags came with me."

They chatted about non immortal things as they went down to the baggage claim area. They were in luck as Liz's bags and her sword were some of the first ones to come down the line. Duncan led her out to where he had his convertible parked. Liz's eyes widened as she looked at the classic convertible.

"Wow. Kyle would just pee himself if he saw this. He loves convertibles. But isn't this kind of a strange car to have in a place that rains so much?"

Duncan grinned. Liz was certainly not boring. "I got this when it was brand new, and for some reason, I just do not want to let it go. It's a little annoying having to put up the top so much, but this car is special to me. Cannot really say why, just that it is."

Liz thought about that. Duncan was not the kind to have hunches or feelings or such; so this must really be important to him.

Duncan gave her a short tour of the city. It was really quite pretty—and so very different then Roswell or any other place she had been—which actually was not saying that much. They parked outside of the Dojo/Gym which was still called Charlie's even though Duncan now owned it. The building was brick and old—for Seacouver—which was a fairly new city. Liz liked it—somehow it fit and felt right. They went inside and up the stairs to the second floor where the apartments started.

"You got this room here Liz. It has its own bathroom and tub and shower. Take a few minutes to put your stuff away, and then come on down to the gym. My office is right off of it. Richie should be in in a little while, and you can meet Charlie. Don't worry about saying anything—Charlie is in the know."

It only took Liz a few minutes to put her clothes away—mostly jeans and shirts, though she had brought one good dress with her just in case they went out. She knew that this trip was not pleasure but serious, but you never knew when you might need a good dress. She then took her sword out of its case and went downstairs.

The Gym pretty much looked like any other that she had been in. Though there were more mats and what looked like quarter staffs and other more ancient weapons on racks on the walls. There was no ring for boxing. A few people were practicing a kata of sorts with a tall black man teaching. She stopped outside of the entry way and watched them for a few minutes. He clearly knew what he was doing.

Charlie noticed the small young woman with the sword right away. This had to be Duncan's new student, Liz Parker. She was certainly small but very pretty. And she had already taken her first head. Richie had told him the story right after Duncan came back. He was still not happy with the prank they had played on him, but he was getting over it. He walked over to her.

"My name is Charlie, and unless I am greatly mistaken, since you are carrying a sword, you must be Liz."

Liz smiled at him. She knew she was going to like Charlie.

"Not too many of us walking around with swords, I would guess."

"More than you might think. Duncan is in the office over there. Probably wants to start right away. We have a second training area out back that we keep closed off. That is where you old people do your thing." Then he winked at her.

She smiled back at him. "I am not old—yet."

Duncan was checking out the books when Liz walked in and sat down in front of his desk.

"Met Charlie. I like him. I bet he has a twisted sense of humor."

Duncan grimaced as he thought of his 'date' with Mrs. Masters. Sooner or later he would take his revenge on Charlie and Richie for that stunt. "Yes, very twisted."

Liz and Duncan both straightened up as they felt the buzz of an approaching Immortal. Liz turned around and saw a young red headed man walking towards them. "Richie I presume?"

Richie Ryan had wanted to get there a little sooner, but getting the extra supplies the Gym needed had taken more time then he originally thought. He felt the buzz and knew that there was more than one immortal in the building and figured that Liz Parker had already gotten there. He waved at Charlie and headed for the office. Sitting in the chair in front of Duncan's desk was a very pretty and petite brunette carrying a sword.

"Liz Parker, right? I doubt there are any other pretty ladies with a sword that are in a gym right now."

Liz smiled at him and shook his hand. He was a lot like Kyle in his manner—she felt right at ease with him.

"Charlie said that I would find more than I thought when I said pretty much the same to him."

Duncan shook his head. "Charlie has gotten pretty cavalier about Immortals ever since he found out about them. He probably took it better than just about any non-Immortal I have ever met. Just the way he is."

Richie nodded. "He really does not take it all too seriously. Which actually makes things easier around here, what with all the fun and games we immortals bring to daily life."

Duncan got up and motioned for Liz and Richie to follow him. They went out the side door and to the back of the gym where Duncan unlocked a door and turned the lights on.

Liz walked into what was a smaller training area than the main one, but one that was clearly meant to train the way they needed to. There were practice swords and real swords in a rack, and otherwise a very clear room.

Duncan motioned for Richie to get a sword. "I want Richie to spar with you first, Liz, so I can more clearly see what you need to work on."

Liz took a deep breath as Richie took a sword and walked into the middle of the room. She gripped her sword and got ready.

About an hour later, Duncan called for them to rest. Liz was breathing pretty hard, and so was Richie. They had both inflicted a fair amount of damage on the other—Richie doing more, but Liz getting in some cuts as well. Liz was glad she had taken the time to change into an older pair of jeans and older shirt since both were going to be pretty much destroyed before the night was over.

She walked over to the seats at the far end of the room and sat down catching the towel that Duncan had tossed to her. She gladly accepted the cold water bottle that Charlie handed her—he had come in about 15 minutes ago and had been watching.

Charlie was impressed by the newbie. She had given Richie a fair amount of trouble and Richie was no slouch. He could see why she had won her first challenge so easily. "I can see why you had very little trouble with that headhunter—she probably really underestimated you."

Liz took a deep drink and nodded to him. "I admit I played her some as well. It got her angry, and she got sloppy, and it cost her."

Charlie nodded. "Yep—one of the first things you learn if you live is that when it gets down and dirty, the first one to lose their temper loses it all."

At that moment Liz, Duncan and Richie all stiffen and look towards the open door. Charlie observed this and said. "I guess we got another one coming, right guys?"

Duncan was trying to recognize the buzz—it did seem familiar. He did not think it was Methos—as far as he knew, Methos was currently in Europe still in the guise of Adam Pierson. He wondered… just as the Immortal walked in the door.

Liz saw the Immortal and immediately felt dowdy and nondescript. Tall, dark haired, beautiful, and dressed in a designer's dress that probably cost enough to run the Crashdown for a year. She absolutely reeked of money, style and class.

Charlie had to admit that this one was a real fox—and dressed to kill. Maybe literally.

Richie's mouth dropped open—talk about dressed to the nines and in exactly the wrong place. BUT what an appearance!

Duncan shook his head, and walked over to her.

Amanda Derioux was rather pleased with herself. She always liked making an entrance, and from the looks she was getting, she had done it again. The dress had been rather expensive, but definitely worth it. Her last few capers had been very lucrative, and she had plenty of money to burn. And she liked nothing better but to burn it on herself.

Duncan carefully hugged Amanda to make sure he did not muss up her very expensive dress, and then kissed her thoroughly.

Liz was a little perplexed; obviously they knew each other well. Yet she had heard nothing about this immortal from anyone. She seemed to be comfortable here and known to at least Duncan and Richie.

Duncan turned to them and said. "Charlie, this is Amanda Derioux, a very OLD friend. Amanda, this is Charlie Desalvo, who really runs this place. Richie and I just make appearances."

After swatting Duncan for the 'old' comment, Amanda smiled and shook Charlie's hand.

Charlie smiled and said, "Well, I think I can safely say that no woman ever entered this place anywhere near as beautiful as you."

Amanda preened a little then turned towards Liz. "You must be Duncan's new student. When I heard that for the first time ever he had taken a female student, I just had to find out more. He always before either got me or Cassandra or some other female immortal to train them. Also heard that you took care of Felicia Rising. And for that I thank you. I just recently found out one of my students was killed by her. I had always thought it was another headhunter that lost his right after. I was just about to start hunting that bitch when I heard you had already given her the short haircut."

Liz was a little overwhelmed but recovered to shake Amanda's hand. "Well it was her or me, and I much preferred it to be me. After I got her quickening, I realized what a true bitch she was. That made it a little easier for sure."

Amanda nodded. "That always makes it easier when the other one is a real bad guy. You did well. And I can see Duncan got you up here to train some more. That is a good thing. BUT now that I am here, I can show you how women do things. It's different in some rather significant ways. But Duncan has certainly made sure that you have the basics down. I just need to show you a few little moves and tricks I have learned over the years so that you can be prepared for them. Women Immortals on the whole are a lot more tricky then the men are—with the men, it's so much about strength. How long can you stay?"

Liz blinked and then answered. "I am here through next Sunday. Cannot really afford to miss too much more school. I still want to go to college, and I want to be my class's valedictorian, so that is a factor."

Amanda shook her head. "You are going to have to move on from what you thought was important as a mortal. Degree's and college and things like that are not important in our world. Though as young as you are, some of that is probably not a bad thing. But you cannot let it be as vital as you once thought it would be."

Liz looked stubborn. "I know I have to change a lot of things in my life, but I refuse to give up on what I have dreamed for years. I intend to have both a top degree and a good life outside of being Immortal. I am not going to let being an Immortal dominate my life. It's just a part of it, not the whole thing."

Amanda raised an eyebrow at that. "Well she certainly is stubborn enough. Takes after you, Duncan. Maybe you have some Highland Scott in your background. Well you are still very young. One can still have dreams when you are young. As you get older, you realize what's important."

Duncan shook his head. "Leave her alone, Amanda. She has plenty of time to make decisions like that, and since she has been able to maintain her old lifestyle so far, it's better that she continue on the road she was on before she became Immortal."

Amanda shrugged. She turned to Richie. "Richie, be a dear and take my bags upstairs. I will need to change if I am going to start teaching Liz the ins and outs of female battles."

Richie blinked. How did he get picked for this? Shaking his head and ignoring Charlie's snicker, he went out to take care of it.

Duncan shook his head. "Well then go ahead and change. I want to spar with Liz some to get a better feel on what she needs to work on."

Amanda kissed him then looked at Liz. "Try not to appear too helpless in order to feed his ego."

Liz laughed at that. She shook her head. "That is something I have never figured out how to do."

Amanda rolled her eyes and said "You have a lot to learn, but luckily I know all about how to work the system. And manipulate men. That is something all women need to learn."

Tess Harding watched the scenery from the passenger seat of the car being driven by Nasedo and contemplated her situation. Supposedly, she was to be the Queen to an Alien King; that is the way it had been 50 years ago. She wondered how anyone could think that just because Zan and Ava married on Antar 50 years ago that Max and Tess would marry now. She understood about royal marriages having to be arranged; that she could accept. But in reality, there was no good reason this time. Supposedly the Royal Four were supposed to lead Antar back to the way it was before Kivar. She did not see why she had to marry someone she had never met to do that. Nasedo was very determined about this; why, he would not say. Tess had been getting more and more suspicious about that; she was beginning to believe that something else was involved. She also wondered why it took so long for Nasedo to figure out that it was Max Evans that, with his sister Isabel, had been the ones that hatched from the pods over 11 years ago. 2 6-year-olds wandering in the desert just a little ways from the pod chamber should have been a dead giveaway; not hard to find out about or to figure out at all.

Max Evans was just getting out of his jeep to head into the Crashdown for lunch (even if Liz was not there right now habits are hard to break) from his job at the UFO museum when a tall, lean man walked up to him and said, "You were once called Zan. I am here to guide you on your course to become King of Antar." Max looked at him in shock. "I have never heard of Zan or Antar—what are you talking about?"

Nasedo shook his head. "I see now that the failure of the crew of your ship was all but complete. They did manage to get your pods out and safely hidden, but they did not leave any instructions or anything else for you, did they?" Max looked around, then motioned for Nasedo to follow him back into the Museum.

After leaving the museum, Nasedo was very optimistic. They knew nothing about who they were or where they came from. So very easy to manipulate them into doing exactly what he needed them to. The only question remaining is where was the Granolith; it had to be near the pods. But from what Max had told them, there was no indication of the Granolith at all. They should have been able to feel it from the pod chamber—the granolith would have been located nearby. The fact that they had not felt anything while there, nor in the time they had spent wandering the immediate area, told Nasedo that once again something else had gone wrong. There was no way to tell where the Granolith was—and for his plan to work, they had to have it.

Max had gone straight home after stopping by the Crashdown to pick up Michael. He and Isabel had to know about this as soon as possible. Everything had changed. They now knew from where they had come from and why. Though as far as Max was concerned, this business of him having to marry this Tess was out of the question. He was going to marry Liz or no one at all.

Tess looked around the house that Nasedo had rented. Not bad, but they really needed to buy some furniture and decorate some, or people would ask questions. That tactic always worked on Nasedo, as by this time Tess had figured out how to manipulate him. From what Nasedo had told her, Michael Guerin (Rath) was working at an alien themed diner. Which was kind of funny when you thought about it. So she decided to head over there and start to get a feel of her fellow members of the Royal Four.

Michael had just finished his shift and went out back to the alley to be alone for a while. He was still reeling from what Max had told him yesterday. He was supposed to be Rath, second and soldier to the King, Zan (Max), as members of the Royal Four, who had been assassinated 50 years ago. Their DNA had been added to human DNA to bring them here and have them grow up in relative safety until they were old enough to begin the campaign to free Antar from Kivar. Tess had come out of her pod on schedule to find Nasedo waiting for her—the other pods had already been empty for some months. Nasedo, as she could remember, had not been happy. Why Nasedo had not been able to figure out where he, Max and Isabel had gone to was something that bothered Michael. His natural suspicion had been raised when Max admitted that there were certainly gaps in the story. Suspicious gaps. And Nasedo either would not or could not answer. Max was of the opinion that Nasedo knew more than he was telling but was also in the dark about other facts as well.

Tess had gone around the back of the diner looking for a back door so that she would have a better chance of finding Michael without others noticing. She realized that her luck was running good when she found him in the alley by himself.

Michael looked over at the short blond. She walked up to him and said. "Greetings Rath; or as you are called here, Michael. I am Tess, in a previous life Ava."

Michael looked at her sharply. "Max told me the story last night. I frankly find the whole thing very strange and very suspicious. Just splicing in DNA and making a hybrid does not mean that you also are able to have the personality or memories of the previous Royal Four. So how are we supposed to go about this whole saving Antar thing?"

Tess raised an eyebrow. So he was just as suspicious about this whole scenario as she was. "I think a whole lot of what was supposed to happen has not. And the changes we have undergone by growing up here instead of Antar are just as important. Frankly I have no intention of marrying Max just because we did in a previous life. This is MY life, and I will choose who I marry. There is no good reason for us to get married since we can do the job as the Royal Four without it. Being Queen is not something I want either—from all I can find out, it was a lousy job that no one in their right mind would take."

Michael smirked. "Right now, there is no way that Max would go along with that no matter what; as long as Liz is around anyway."

"Liz?"

"Liz Parker. Max's girlfriend. Her parents own the Crashdown. Just from watching the last few months, I can imagine what Max will say to Nasedo if he brings it up."

Tess considered this. As far as she was concerned, this was a very good thing. If Max was as serious about his girlfriend as Michael seemed to think, and he was certainly not someone to say something that he was not sure of, then she had nothing to worry about as regards having to marry him. She decided to let Nasedo know about this immediately—she was going to enjoy the look on his face.

Nasedo had found out where Max's girlfriend was very easily. He had gone into the Diner where she worked and had asked for Liz, as being recommended by a friend who had been there before. The aged waitress Agnes apparently thought she was shirking by visiting friends in Seacouver. Michael had told Tess that she was staying with a Duncan McLeod. He had to give her credit for being able to get that much detail from the apparently normally taciturn teen. He had not given out where she was; now he knew. It was a simple process from that point on to find out that Duncan McLeod owned a gym and apparently lived above it. Nasedo decided to act immediately to remove the only real impediment that he could see in his plans—Liz Parker.

Liz had decided to take a walk as she really could not sleep that night. Mindful of Duncan's warning, she wore a long raincoat and had her sword with her. She had just left the building and had not gone far when she realized that she was being followed. Deciding to confront whoever it was, she walked into an alley and then waited.

Nasedo could not believe his luck—she was wandering by herself late at night. He had only been there a day and already his plans were working. He followed her and saw her go into an alley—this was almost perfect. He walked into the alley to find her waiting for him.

Liz assessed the tall lean dark haired man. Well let's find out. "OK, why are you following me?"

Nasedo had to give her credit—she did not appear intimidated at all and was direct and to the point. Well that was fine with him. Apparently she knew all about the aliens—or thought she did, from what Tess had relayed from Michael.

"My name is Nasedo, and I am the one to guide the Royal Four to accomplish their mission. They should have been told immediately after coming out of the pods, but like most of the plans made, it was a failure. However, I am here now to rectify that mistake. And one problem is you."

Liz raised her eyebrow. "I am guessing you mean something about Max?"

"He will marry Tess to complete the Royal Four so that they can fulfill their destiny to free Antar."

Liz shook her head. "Why does Max have to marry Tess? That will have nothing to do with starting a revolution. And it would have nothing to do with how they do it. That is not logical, and does not sound necessary. Even if Max was willing, which he would not be."

Then so be it. I will take care of this problem right now. "So you would not step aside?"

"Only if Max asked me to, and he will not."

"Then you have no one but yourself to blame for this." And he raised his hand and sent a blast of energy right at Liz. It hit her in the chest and slammed her against the building, where she slumped down to the alley.

Liz had never felt such pain before. She managed to raise her eyes to Nasedo.

He smiled horribly at her. "I made a deal with Kivar many years ago to betray the Royal Four. All I have to do is bring an heir to the throne. Max will marry Tess, and that is all I need. Once a child is conceived, they will all die. All I need is the child. If you had just decided to walk away, you would have lived. Now you die."

Liz gave in to the darkness, but vowing Nasedo would be in for a big surprise soon.

Looking around, Nasedo picked up the body and moved it behind a dumpster. He decided to get his car and take the body to the bay and dump it there. It would be a long time before it would be found, and by then, very hard to identify. Tess would be there to comfort the heartbroken Max. Things were looking better and better.

Liz revived being jostled and realizing quickly she was in a vehicle moving. And she was probably in the trunk. Carefully moving around, she was able to pull out her sword and position herself so that the moment the trunk was opened, she would be ready.

Nasedo looked around carefully after he got out of the car near the bay. After looking around, he was able to detect where the strong currents were—just what he needed to get rid of the body. It would have been better to just blast it to dust, but he did not really have the power to do that. His blasting powers were not on the level of Antarians; they had always been the most powerful. But this would do well enough for his purposes. With luck, he would be off this pitiful world in only a few months. The body might not be found until after he left.

Liz waited tensely. The Car had stopped minutes ago. She could just barely hear what sounded like foghorns—so she had a hunch they were close to the bay. Probably where he meant to dump her body. Well he was about to find out the hard way how tough it was to keep an Immortal down for the count.

Nasedo pulled out his keys and unlocked the trunk. *This should take only a few minutes,* he thought as he opened it up, *and I can be gone.* Suddenly, he felt a great pain in his body. He looked down and was stunned to see a sword sticking out of his chest. Then it was pulled out, and the pain grew worse. He staggered back, stumbling, trying to stay on his feet when he saw the girl get out of the trunk, holding the sword. He could not believe it. She had been dead. There was no doubt about it.

Liz got out of the trunk, and stalked the stumbling, wounded alien.

"You are about to find out the hard way that I am a lot tougher then I look. I don't know if you believe in hell, but you are about to find out one way or another."

Liz, with a smooth practiced swing, beheaded the alien.

The head went rolling, and the body fell. In moments the head and body changed to a reptilian form.

*Interesting,* Liz thought. *Either a chameleon or shapeshifter. Does not matter though.* She looked around. Liz had not yet taken her driver's ed course, and what little experience she had would not be enough to get back to the Gym. Not to mention she had no idea exactly where she was and did not know the city well enough anyway. She decided that she needed to call Duncan. Unfortunately, there were no phones nearby. So she put the pieces into the trunk and managed to drive around until she found a pay phone.

Duncan arrived about half an hour later. With him were Amanda and Richie. Liz grimaced when she saw them—she really had not wanted to let anyone else know about aliens, but what will be will be.

Duncan walked up to where Liz was standing beside a car. She went over, opened up the trunk, and stood back. Duncan looked into the trunk and could not believe his eyes. What looked like some kind of two legged reptile, about the size of an average man, green with scales and the whole reptile part. And it was in two pieces, the head being separate. Richie and Amanda had come up, and their gasps let him know he was not seeing things.

It took Liz about 15 minutes to explain about aliens and what this all meant. The other immortals would have been skeptical, but the evidence was right before their eyes.

"Duncan, I have to get the body back to Roswell. No matter what he was, he was all the family Tess had. And they can blast it to dust so we never have to worry about it being found."

Duncan was still in partial shock so Amanda took over. For some reason, this did not seem to shock her all that much, and to the surprise of the others, she right away got to the point.

"Duncan can charter a small aircraft. We can box this up and just ship it as normal freight. From what I can remember, Roswell does have an airport if a small one. As long as someone is waiting for us with a truck, there should be no problem."

Liz nodded. "That makes sense. We need to find a box that we can seal right away though."

Amanda thought for a moment, and then went to the pay phone. She dialed a number from memory. "Sam, I know this is late at night ,but I need a favor NOW. And you owe me. I need a box about the size of a standard coffin that can be sealed air- and water-tight and can take rough handling. I need it at Charlie's Gym by noon tomorrow."

They had managed to get the car to the gym and the pieces out of it into the gym where they wrapped it in some plastic sheets. Duncan then took the car and got rid of it, Richie following in the convertible. Amanda was right on the phone again chartering an aircraft, promising the pilot a bonus if he got them all to Roswell by dark that next day. Liz remarked that Amanda did a real good job of spending Duncan's money. Amanda smirked at her and told her that was another lesson she needed to teach the Newbie. How to manipulate men.

Tess was wondering where Nasedo was. He had told her he would be gone for a day or two but said nothing more. Used to this, she still wondered what could be so important since he had finally found the rest of the Royal Four. She shrugged and kept at work unpacking the items she had bought the previous day on his charge card. He probably would not be happy (though she knew there was plenty of money—a large amount of gold had been sent with Nasedo as they had found out that that relatively plentiful mineral elsewhere was scarce and considered a commodity here), but she could care less. She looked up when the doorbell rang. Who could this be? She had not told any of the others where they lived yet. She opened the front door to see what appeared to be the Sheriff of Roswell.

Sheriff Valenti took off his hat as he faced the young girl. "Sheriff Valenti—I am just stopping by since I always visit people just moving into Roswell. I like to keep in touch with the community." He turned around when he heard the door opening of his blazer. Kyle got out and headed up the sidewalk. Valenti shook his head—he should have known that Kyle would want to get introduced as soon as he saw a pretty girl.

Tess decided to play it safe and invited them in—she figured this way it would look less suspicious. Besides the sheriff's son was cute.

Liz decided that flying full size airliners was the only way to fly. These small planes were just way too easy for winds to bounce around. She looked down at the ground and was glad that it would only be another hour or so. Not only smaller and less comfortable, this two engine prop plane was a lot slower than jets. They had left just after noon and would make it just in time for sunset, about 7 PM. She had gotten a hold of Max and had told him that they needed a van or truck, preferably a van, and to meet them at the Roswell Airport around 7PM. She had also told him that they needed to have Tess there. She then told him that she did not want to go into details over the phone.

Max, Michael, Tess, and Isabel waited tensely as the airport. They had tried to figure out what Liz was bringing that needed a van and also clearly wanted it to be as hush hush as possible. Was it Immortal or alien related?

During his talk with Liz, Max had brought up the Immortal question. Liz had told him to use his own judgment, but that it was OK with her for him to tell Tess about Immortals. Max had decided that they really had no choice, and that Tess would find out sooner or later anyway.

Tess sat with the other hybrids still trying to come to grips with the whole Immortality part. Here she had thought that she was superior to humans, but no one had ever heard of Immortality. Being able to come back to life after death and being able to heal virtually any wound was about as unbelievable to her as aliens would be to most humans. She wondered what was to come next?

The two engine plane landed and taxied over to where the hybrids were waiting. They had Max's jeep and Michael had been able to talk Maria in to letting him borrow her mother's van. Maria had made him promise on his life to bring it back with no scratches or damage.

Duncan McLeod was the first one out that they recognized after the pilot came out. Then came Liz and a strange young man and older woman. Liz ran to Max, and after a hug and a searing kiss, she beckoned him and Michael over to help unload the big long box in the back of the plane. It took some doing to manhandle it, but they got it into the van at last, and then they headed into town. It was decided to go to Tess's place since it was out on the edge of town, and there were no houses very close—it was a new development, and not many homes had been built yet.

Once they got to the house and got the box inside, Liz went up to Tess.

"Tess, I am very sorry to tell you this, but inside this box is the body of Nasedo."

All the hybrids dropped their jaws in shock. Interestingly Tess seemed the least affected.

Taking a deep breath, Liz recounted the events of the last 24 hours. When she had finished, the hybrids sat there thinking. Tess was the first one to speak.

"I want all of you to know that I knew nothing about Nasedo having a deal with Kivar. Though now knowing that, some of the things he has done over the years make a little sense now. I always thought there was something he had not told me, but I had no idea it was anything like this."

Liz looked at her sympathetically. "From the way he talked right before I passed out, once the child was born, you were dead as well. He had no feeling for you at all. You were just a means to an end for him. As all of you were. All he cared about was getting the deal with Kivar done."

Max looked at the other immortals. "So were you guys as shocked about aliens as we were about Immortals?"

Richie shook his head. The last 24 hours had blown his mind. "I guess so. When Liz called Duncan and said she had a problem she needed help with, the last thing I expected was a beheaded alien."

Amanda nodded. "I was as skeptical about Aliens as I imagine a lot of people were about Immortals."

Duncan smiled slightly. "After all the things I have seen over 450 years, I have to admit that seeing that body was as shocking as anything I have ever seen before."

Liz was thinking about other complications. "Tess, we now have to figure out something for you. As a teenager, you need a guardian. I suppose it was too much to ask if Nasedo had ever made any plans or preparations if something happened to him?"

Tess shook her head. "He was pretty arrogant. It never occurred to him that anything like that would ever happen. Since it's clear he only cared about himself, I doubt he ever did anything. I do have access to his accounts and such—so money is not a problem. However, someone here will start asking questions before long—and I already had a visit from Sheriff Valenti. I guess he makes a habit of checking out new arrivals in Roswell."

Liz looked thoughtful. "Yeah, he always does things like that. He told my dad once that that way if the new arrivals had bad news with them, he got a jump start on it. He will certainly make a point of stopping by until he meets Nasedo. So we are going to have to come up with some kind of cover story."

Michael was looking out the window, keeping watch. "I guess a storm is brewing. The wind is picking up, and it's getting darker." He then noticed lights coming towards the house. "Oh OH, I think you have visitors, Tess. And it looks like the Sheriff."

James Valenti had no real reason to visit the Hardings—he just had a hunch he should be there. When he told Kyle what he was doing, of course he wanted to come along. Just to save an argument, Valenti gave in. The storm now brewing maybe made this not so great an idea; on the other hand, the young girl might still be alone, and he would make a point of checking on her anyway. Frankly, her guardian did not sound all that responsible. He had already decided to check into this Ed Harding.

It had just started raining when Kyle and the Sheriff started towards the house. Seeing The DeLuca Van and Max Evans jeep already there just made the sheriff more curious. Why would they be here?

The house had some fairly large trees that had been left over when the lots were built on—the developer realizing that they would be a selling point. Just as Kyle was halfway up the walk, lightning hit one of the trees, splitting it in half. One half remained upright— the other half fell—on Kyle.

Michael was the first to sound the alarm, and they all ran outside to find the sheriff desperately trying to get Kyle out from under the tree. Max, Duncan, Richie and Michael each grabbed a branch and between the five of them they were able to raise it enough for Liz and Isabel to pull Kyle out from under. The sheriff ran to his son's side. Liz looked up at Max and shook her head—Kyle was too badly injured to survive.

Jim Valenti had never felt so helpless. It was clear that his son was too badly injured to survive—even if they got him right to the hospital. But that was at least half an hour's drive in this weather. He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Max and Liz keeling beside him.

Liz took a deep breath. "Sheriff, I think Max can heal Kyle. But he has to try right now before he loses consciousness. You have to let him try—it's Kyle's only chance."

Numbly, the Sheriff moved aside. He knew that as crazy as it sounded, Liz Parker would not say something like that if she did not mean it. Whatever it took to save his son.

Max knelt next to Kyle and placed one hand on his chest and the other on Kyle's head.

"Kyle—KYLE! Look at me. KYLE."

Kyle was dazed and in pain, and he thought he heard someone talking to him. He managed to open his eyes and saw Max Evans. What was he doing here? What had happened?

Max made the connection and started healing Kyle. He had never healed anyone with such injuries—and was not sure he could do it. He looked up at Liz—who silently mouthed the words, "You can do it, Max."

Sheriff Jim Valenti could not remember ever even thinking that he would see something like this. Max Evans was healing his son—he could see the wounds healing and disappearing. He could also see that it was draining Max. He just hoped he could hang on long enough.

Liz was very worried about Max. She could see how much this was draining him. She looked up at Isabel, who was right beside them. "Is there any way you can help? Feed him energy or something? This is really draining him."

Isabel took a deep breath—but it was Tess that answered. "If we all are touching, the four of us, we can feed him energy. I don't know how much, but Nasedo told me that we could do that."

Michael and Isabel moved over to let Tess get between them. Max continued to heal Kyle and they each placed a hand on Max's shoulder.

Max was feeling exhausted, but he knew he needed to make sure Kyle would live. Suddenly, he felt strength returning to him, and he immediately used it on Kyle.

The Immortals stood there watching as Max healed Kyle. Richie shook his head. "Just when I thought I had seen it all."

Max finally sat back and almost fell over—Liz catching and holding him. Kyle slowly sat up. He looked around him. "What the hell happened?"

As it was starting to rain again, they all went into the house with the sheriff and Michael helping Kyle who kept protesting he was fine but was a little wobbly, and Liz and Isabel helping Max who was pretty well drained. Tess fussed around with Kyle, having him sit in the easy chair and putting a blanket over him much to his protest. Max dropped like a rock into the other easy chair, with Liz on his lap. The rest of them sat on the sofa or grabbed chairs from the kitchen table.

The Sheriff, after making sure for the fourth or fifth time that his son was ok, finally asked the question: "OK, just what the hell is going on?" He looked right at Liz, who looked around and found everyone else looking at her. "Why does it always fall to me to explain it to everyone?" Max weakly smile at her, "Because everyone trusts you to tell the truth." Liz sighed and got up slowly and whispered something to Tess who blinked then got up and headed to the kitchen. She came back with a steak knife which she handed to Liz.

Liz looked at the knife for a moment and sighed. Looking at Kyle and the Sheriff she started.

"The day I got shot, there was a screw-up by an air-headed nurse, and the monitors were not correctly hooked up, since the bullet shifted and nicked an artery. I bled out, and I died… only to revive a couple of hours later. Perfectly healthy and no bullet wound." She then pulled up her shirt and showed the Sheriff and Kyle her unmarked stomach.

"I was very lucky in that Duncan McLeod was traveling through Roswell and sensed me as I was taken by ambulance to the hospital. He snuck in that night just in time to keep me from freaking out. For a very tiny fraction of the human population, death is not final. For me, Duncan, Amanda, Richie and a few thousand others, it's only the beginning. Our Immortality is triggered by our first death. After that, we do not age, and any wound can be healed, and if we die anyway, we revive fully healed a few hours later." Liz then took the knife and cut her arm. The stunned sheriff and his son watched as the wound healed in less than a minute, leaving no trace except for the blood.

"The downside of this is that the quickening, the energy that revives us, keeps us from aging, and heals our wounds, can be transferred from one immortal to another, but only one way. If the immortal is decapitated, then the quickening is released and flows to the other immortal. It's like a drug high, and it makes the other immortal's quickening stronger. Legend has it that one day there will be only one Immortal who will have all the quickening of all immortals who have ever lived. It is said that that Immortal will have the power to rule the world." Liz then went over to her rain coat and pulled out her sword and showed it to the Sheriff. "A couple of months ago, a headhunter, an Immortal who does just that, showed up and challenged me. I killed her and took her head and her quickening. Now I can understand how some would get addicted to that, even without the possibility of winning the prize. I was up at Seacouver at Duncan's gym getting some training in when one night, I took a walk and this man came up to me. He said his name was Nasedo and that he was an alien who was supposed to guide the Royal Four. To cut down a long story, he had the ability to project energy, and he blasted me, killing me. Unfortunately for him, I revived in the trunk of his car, and when he got to the bay where he intended to dump my body, and opened up the trunk, he got my sword in his chest in return, and then I beheaded him." She then motioned for the Sheriff and Kyle to follow her into one of the bedrooms where a long box was sitting on the floor. Liz opened the box and stood back while the Sheriff and Kyle looked and gasped. "Right after I beheaded him, he changed back into what I figured was his natural form. We brought it back here since I thought Tess would want that, and also for them to get rid of it without a trace." She then closed the box and walked back into the living room, with the Sheriff and Kyle slowly following.

"Max, Isabel, Michael and Tess are all alien/human hybrids, a mixture of alien and human DNA. Nasedo was supposed to be their guardian, but as I was dying, he boasted of a deal he had made long ago with the Dictator of Antar, Kivar. The royal four were cloned from the murdered royal four and were supposed to lead a revolution to overthrow their killer, Kivar. They were on the ship that crashed in 1947; their pods were smuggled out and away from the military and hidden. A little over 40 years later, they came out of their pods as 6 year olds. Tess came out a little later and found Nasedo waiting for her. His plan was for Tess to seduce Max, get pregnant, and then take them back to Antar where they all would have been executed except for the baby, who would have been the pawn of Kivar. Max, Isabel, and Michael had no idea about any of this until just recently. They knew they were different years ago, but only last year did they find the cave that had the pods in it, and they realized what they were."

Tess looked around and decided that honesty was the best policy at the moment.

"Nasedo once mentioned something called the Granolith. Apparently it was sent to be near the future king when he hatched and grew up. He was a little vague about it, but apparently it is a huge power source and memory bank and even a transport if necessary. I think that is how Nasedo intended to get back to Antar. He really believed it had to be somewhere near to you or the crash site. I guess it's possible that the military have it. It is not supposed to be accessible to anyone other than the Royal Four."

Liz looked at Tess. "Did Nasedo ever mention what species he was? He was a shapeshifter, clearly, but that is something that none of the rest of you can do. I am thinking he came from another planet in the same system as Antar is or maybe a nearby system."

Tess shook her head. "He never told me, but I knew he was a different species. I got the impression that he was basically a hired gun. So I guess it should come as no surprise that he sold us out."

Kyle, who had been very quiet so far, finally roused himself. "So Liz, your specialty is now real short haircuts?"

Liz looked at him with narrowed eyes. "Only for Immortals that challenge me—but I might make an exception if someone really pisses me off."

That broke the tension in the room. As everyone relaxed, conversation became general as the rest of the Immortals got to know the teens from Roswell. The Sheriff got up and went to Max.

"There is no way I can ever repay you, Max, for saving my son's life. So anything I can do to help, just let me know." Liz, who was sitting in Max's lap, had a thought. She looked up at the Sheriff.

"As far as we can tell, Tess has no identity or papers at all. She pretty much does not exist. And of course, she is a teenager, so now we have the question of legal guardianship."

Duncan overheard this and went over to where they were sitting. "I know someone that can put together the paperwork Tess will need. And he can get it done in a few days." Liz nodded. She then looked at the sheriff. "If Duncan can get that done, maybe we can also get it fixed so that since Tess's guardian died, someone else can be designated. We do NOT want her becoming part of the Child Welfare System that worked so well for Michael."

The Sheriff looked thoughtful. "I will quietly check the law and ask a few questions from an attorney I know. I think I may have an idea of what we can do about Tess's situation." He looked at Duncan. "Have that paperwork sent to me. I think with that in hand, I can fix things."

Joe Dawson put down the phone. That was a call from Amanda's watcher, which mirrored a call that he had just gotten from Richie's watcher a few minutes earlier; Duncan, Richie, and Amanda had suddenly left the gym and headed downtown in the middle of the night. The two watchers had been switching off keeping the gym covered since there were 4 immortals there at the moment. Amanda's watcher had been on duty at the time and had called the other watcher as she followed them. They found them with Liz and a strange car near the bay. They had not been able to get close enough to hear anything even with parabolic microphones. They had loaded something into the trunk of the car and had then headed back to the Gym. Later that morning, they had all taken off and gone to the airport where a small two engine plane picked them and a large box up. The small plane had NOT filed a flight plan, so there was no way to know where it was going. Joe thought about it for a while, then picked up the phone, called Cynthia, and told her to be on the lookout for Liz, Duncan, Richie and Amanda. That was the only place he could come up with.

Cynthia sat and thought for a few minutes after Joe's call. Then she got in her car and headed towards the Evans house. Passing by she saw that Max's jeep was gone. She then headed for the Crashdown, then the UFO Museum, but no trace of the jeep. Then she passed by Michael's apartment with the same result. Just to be thorough she then went by the High School in case some school event was going on but no jeep there either. Out of pure desperation she went by the DeLuca's, and noticed the van was gone but the car was there—Maria used the car whenever she had to drive. As a last resort, she then went by the Whitmans', and not only saw no jeep, but spotted Alex helping his dad with yard work. On her way to the Evan's, she had passed the clinic and noticed no one there. So she was totally at a loss to figure out where the Jeep and Max Evans were. She then checked her watch and tried to figure out how long it would take the plane to get to Roswell. She then realized that Joe had to have been off on his math as by her calculations the plane should be getting to Roswell right about now. She then sped off to the airport—and found nothing. Nosing around a little, she was able to find out a light plane had landed then almost immediately had taken off only about a half hour earlier. She went back to her car and thumped the steering wheel in frustration. IF she had gone out to the airport right after Joe's call, then she would have been there in time. She then went back and did the rounds again with the same result. After that, she went home and went to bed.

It was decided that Richie would stay at Tess's place while Duncan and Amanda would go to the apartment. They borrowed the SUV that was Nasedo's—he had used a taxi to get to the airport on the way to Seacouver. Tess admitted no use for it since she had not been taught to drive herself. Liz then realized that she had not told her parents she would be back in town 2 days early. She then looked at the clock and was shocked to see it was close to 11. The Crashdown closed at 9 every night, so by now, her parents were almost certainly in bed. So she ended up staying at Tess's place that night as well. Max took Isabel back home, then went over to Maria's to pick up Michael after he dropped off the van. Liz had told Michael not to tell Maria that she was home already—she would do that in the morning. The Sheriff and Kyle had left earlier.

Tess found herself acting as hostess to Liz and Richie, not something she had any familiarity with doing. They made it easy on her by pretty much falling asleep immediately. The next morning, she decided to see if she could cook something, and tried to make breakfast. About halfway through what she could see was about to become an epic failure, Liz came into the kitchen and was able to salvage most of the breakfast. Liz laughed that while she might have been a waitress, she had had to help out in the kitchen at the Crashdown on more than a few occasions, so she did have some experience in that area, and agreed to teach Tess the basics. Richie came wandering in lured by the smell of food not long after. After a relaxed meal, Richie looked at Liz and asked, "So do you think we can get in some sparing? I figure Duncan will have arranged flights back to Seacouver either today or early tomorrow. So this could be your last chance for a while." Liz looked thoughtful, then got up and looked out the back door into the yard which did have a privacy fence surrounding it. She looked over at Tess and said, "Do you mind? Might leave some blood on the lawn in the back yard, but that should be all the damage that we do." Tess looked intrigued at the idea of watching, and said go ahead.

Liz and Richie had been going at it for about half an hour when Tess, watching from the back porch, heard a car park in the front drive. Signaling the battling Immortals to stop, she headed through the house to see who it was. It was the SUV with Duncan and Amanda in it. She went out to greet them and told them that Liz and Richie had been sparing in the back. Duncan immediately looked around, but Tess assured him that the privacy fence meant no one could see them, and her house was at least a quarter mile away from any other house so no one could hear them either. Amanda then reached into the SUV and took out her sword, "A chance to spar out in the open and not in a smelly and stuffy gym is not to be passed up." Duncan shrugged and took out his own sword as well. Tess led them through the house to the back thinking that she would be able to really see something since everyone had told her that Duncan was truly a master.

Max had headed out as early as he could towards Tess's house to pick up Liz to take her home. Isabel had declined to come with him preferring to sleep in. Michael had also told Max that sleeping in was his personal good time, and since he had the afternoon/evening shift at the Crashdown, he wanted that extra rest. He pulled up behind the SUV thinking that they all must be in the house. But after he turned the motor off he could hear the sounds of metal on metal—and he realized that a sword fight was going on. Worried about Liz, he rushed around the back and went through the gate, then stopped in shock. Amanda and Liz were sparing, while Richie and Duncan were warming up. He went over to stand beside Tess and asked, "How long as this been going on." Tess shrugged and said, "About an hour. First it was Liz and Richie, then now you see Amanda and Liz, then Duncan and Richie will be on."

The Sheriff had the early watch that day and decided to head over to Tess's. He had discussed his idea with Kyle who was totally supportive. Now he wanted to run it by Tess. His blazer turned the corner of the street, and he noticed the SUV and Max's jeep already there. As he parked the blazer and got out, he heard the sound of metal on metal in a way he had never heard before. Puzzled, he followed the sound until he came to a gate at the back which he opened and went into the backyard. There he was astounded to see Liz and Amanda fighting, with Richie and Duncan apparently warming up. He spotted Max and Tess on the back porch and went to join them.

Tess and the Sheriff were astonished as the two women battled. Cuts healed almost immediately, slashes only a little slower, and neither was able to land a really telling blow. It looked to them like an even battle. Max noticed with pride that Liz had gotten better since her fight with the headhunter—and considering that Amanda was over 1000 years old, being able to fight to a draw was a big confidence booster for Liz. They finally called it quits, both breathing hard. Liz had already had a good work out with Richie before Duncan and Amanda arrived, and Duncan had convinced Amanda to immediately fight Liz, thereby giving her some experience at fighting a fresh opponent while not being fresh herself. It had not been easy for Liz at first since Amanda fought very differently from Richie, but she adjusted quickly, and soon gave as good as she got.

Duncan looked at Liz with approval—she had certainly improved since her journey to Seacouver. He told Liz as much. Amanda echoed that sentiment, saying Liz was a very quick study. Liz thanked them both, and then looked up at the porch and noticed Max and the sheriff for the first time. She had concentrated totally on her match with Amanda and had not noticed them come in. She walked towards them and caught a towel tossed to her by Tess, who gave another to Amanda. They all sat down to watch Richie and Duncan go at it.

The Sheriff thought he had seen pretty good sword-fighting from the two women, but realized that Duncan was in a whole different class, and that it took all that Richie had to keep it close. He was awed by the speed and power of the fight. Tess just marveled at how fast they moved and how quick they were. Max noted the difference and realized that if Liz was challenged by any Immortal even close to Duncan's level, she had no chance to survive. That really bothered him, and he began to brood about it. Liz, sitting next to him, noted the change in his demeanor and tried to figure out what had caused it. Not getting an idea herself, she decided to just ask.

"What has got you brooding, Max? I know you are, and it's got something to do with Immortals or me, so just spill."

Max blinked and looked at Liz, who made it very clear she was not going to settle for anything less than the truth. So he told her. Liz sat back and thought for a couple of minutes on what to say to Max, since she had long ago realized the same truth.

"Max, what will be will be. I should have been dead 6 months ago, so anything more than that is truly a gift. I will do my best to survive, but of course if anyone close to as good as Duncan challenges me, I am toast, and I know it. And there is nothing I can do about it, so no point in dwelling on it. You are going to have to come to grips with that and accept it, or we do not have much of a future together no matter how long I live. It could happen at any time, or it might not happen at all. You will have to accept that."

The Sheriff had decided to tell Tess what he had come up with and did while Max and Liz were talking. Tess was very surprised but agreed to think about it—and admitted that that was probably the best solution to her problem. She of course realized that they needed to keep everything possible inside of the circle of people who already knew—that was better for everyone.

Major Sam Tolner felt the usual derision as he drove through Roswell. This place never ceased to really irritate him. He was not sure why, whether it was the tacky Alien BS (that he knew to be totally untrue) or the tourists that it drew or what, it just did. However, it was part of his duty to touch base here at least a few times a year. It was the only town near dead center, and there was always a possibility something might turn up. His first stop would be the Sheriff's office; he was not a skeptic and also not a believer—just someone who was pretty good at spotting something that did not fit, and that was what Major Tolner needed. His quarry would blend in very well, but there would still be things what would stand out if someone noticed.

Sheriff Valenti was checking some of the paperwork that Duncan McLeod had sent him, and he marveled at how thorough it was, and how professional they looked. It should make what he had in mind fairly simple to execute. He looked up when one of his deputies said that a military officer was here to see him. He quickly stuffed the papers in a drawer and stood to meet the officer.

After a few minutes of pleasantry, the officer got down to business.

"Anything unusual show up recently?"

Valenti thought a minute and decided to take a chance, and to also perhaps shift any focus from the town to the outlying areas.

"Not totally sure, but I have had some reports in the last week or so that something has been going on southwest of town. Nothing definite, and every time I go out that way, I find virtually nothing, but the reports have been fairly consistent, and they are not coming from anyone that I would consider unreliable."

Major Tolner sat forward in interest. "What kind of reports?"

"Not the usual UFO stuff. Supposedly something like lightning, but only when there are no clouds, and also that it looks like a couple of places where the rocks appear to have been blown up, but I have found no traces of explosive. Of course, I would need to have seen the rocks before to be sure they were blown up, and I did not—but the appearances do seem consistent with that."

Max had told the Sheriff where they had gone last year to practice their powers but had decided that the place had too much traffic and would not be going there again. It was also well away from where the Pod Chamber was. Valenti had decided to use that place to get the Military concentrating there and not closer to town. He knew that some efforts were being made, and they appeared to be gaining strength.

Major Tolner was intrigued. This sounded like the first solid lead in a very long time. Certainly since before he had taken command of the Unit.

"I need the exact location. I can send some tech types there, and they can determine if the rocks had been altered in any way."

After the Major had left, Valenti left the office and told his senior deputy that he would be going through town on a patrol. He then did that for about an hour before stopping off at the Crashdown for something to eat and to talk to Liz.

Liz was counting the minutes until her shift ended—these weekends really needed to get longer—though with the holidays right around the corner, it was going to get even busier. She saw the Sheriff come in and sit in her section. She immediately went over to him with his usual drink.

Valenti had to smile at the costumes the waitresses there wore. If people only knew, he thought. When Liz bought him his usual drink, he quickly ordered, and with a gesture, he let Liz know he needed to talk to her. She took his order and remarked that he would probably be her last customer before her shift ended. He nodded and knew that she meant he would go out back after leaving, and she would let him in the rear door. Michael Guerin was doing cook duty, so no problem there.

Michael saw the Sheriff come in, and he had an inkling something was up. He watched Liz carefully and could just barely tell that she was more alert than usual. Sounded like the Sheriff had some news. He hoped for once it was good news, but his natural pessimism argued against it. His shift ended at the same time as Liz's, but Jose was not yet here. He hoped he got there quickly since he wanted to get any news first hand.

Liz walked out the back right as her shift ended and looked around. The sheriff was right there, and she let him in, and took him right upstairs the back way so no one could see him from the diner area. Michael was right behind him as Jose had just shown up.

Jeff and Nancy were out picking up supplies, so no one else was around. The three of them sat in the kitchen, and Liz got them both cold drinks out of the refrigerator.

Liz looked at the sheriff as she sat down. "So, good news or bad news?"

Michael smirked. Liz really got to the point quick.

The Sheriff shrugged. "Hard to tell for sure. The Major who is in charge of a special unit that I think might be alien hunters stopped by today. He usually does it a couple times a year. I got the impression he was suspicious of this area a year or so ago. It was more pronounced today—so I fed him some misinformation, but also gave him the location where Max, Isabel, and Michael did some practicing last year and blew up rocks and such. Not sure they will find anything, kind of doubt it, but it will keep them out of town and looking in the opposite direction from where the Pod Chamber is. Since that is in line with where the crash site was, I think it would be more likely to seem credible to them. They have never sent anyone other than one man in to talk to me, and I have never seen them around town otherwise, and I wanted to keep it that way. Michael, do you think they will find anything?"

Michael thought hard—he knew they had been very careful to leave no trace behind last year; all they had done was blast bigger rocks into smaller rocks. "I think we did a pretty good job of making sure that we left nothing behind—now maybe if they examine the rocks they might." He looked at Liz.

Liz had been thinking about that. "Everything I can gather and figure out indicates that your powers are mental or psychic; the power generated and focused into blasting would not have any radioactivity or anything like it, so I really doubt that the military will be able to find out anything by looking at those rocks."

The sheriff looked relieved. "I hope so. Finding nothing would be a big help in that it would cause them to look elsewhere and farther away. From what Tess said, Nasedo had stayed away from this area ever since she came out of the pod. So unless there are other aliens, they will not find anything."

Graves looked around the area in distaste—he really disliked this area. Though he did not like the entire planet, this area was high on his list of places he really did not like. However, his orders were clear: Check the area out for any sign of the Royal Four. Not that he expected to find anything; just like they had not found anything every other place they had looked. They had not even been able to find the Pods, and personally, Graves believed that they had been destroyed in the crash. They had systematically searched the area for almost 100 miles in every direction away from the crash site and had not found any sign at all. He hoped that someday the higher ups finally gave up and allowed them to go home; too many years spent here in their skin suits had worked on all of them to the point that Graves privately thought that most of his people would be useless even if they suddenly were needed.

Major Tolner had decided that he would use the info gathering mission to also get his combat teams a little field time. This area was pretty well deserted, and a couple of words to the State Highway patrol had resulted in them putting up a couple of road blocks on the only two roads leading here; they should not be disturbed. Both 12-man squads had packed full combat loads; each squad had 3 men with the special model 40MM grenade launcher that was pretty much an enlarged street sweeper capable of firing 15 rounds as fast as you could pull the trigger. A mixture of HE and the special Thermite/WP rounds should be enough to take down any alien they were likely to meet. The rest of the men carried the Super Tasers that could hit someone 50 feet away with 100,000 volts. He was pretty confident that they could handle anything that came up.

Graves had his people checking out the area where one had thought that he had found signs that someone had been blasting rocks—and not using explosives. Since those were powers that the Royal Four would have, that had prompted this look-see.

In response to word from his scouts, the Major crawled on his belly to the top of the small hill that looked down on the area that he was interested in. As part of their training, he had had his combat team do scouting exercises—and it looked like it might have paid off. He carefully trained his binoculars on the scene below. Approximately 20 people were looking around the area he was interested in—and they were not using any instruments that he could see. Instead, they had their hands out as if trying to feel or sense something. This definitely did not look right—but on the other hand, they could be some religious nuts out on a revival too. Then one of them went over to a boulder about half the size of a car that had been split down the middle and put his hand on one side—and it moved slightly. That was enough for the major. He motioned to the other two scouts to follow him down the hill.

"Alright, I think we have finally found what we have been looking for. Team 1, circle to the right; Team 2, circle to the left. When you are both in position, signal me. Then move in with tasers first, but be ready to use all force necessary. I would really like to get a couple alive, but our first responsibility is to make sure none of them get away. I am making a call right now for more support—but we all know that will be hours away. We have to handle this ourselves. Good luck and good hunting."

Graves looked up as he sensed something. What he saw was a group of soldiers coming towards him with weapons that were not standard military issue. He knew enough to know what that meant. He signaled his people to face them and fight.

Major Tolner watched the battle from the top of the hill. All weapons that were thought to be effective were down there—the remaining men and himself only had their sidearms and standard M4 weapons—not thought to be very effective. And that appeared to be correct. His men were doing well, but the fact was that except for the men with the 40MM launchers, his people had to get close to use their other weapons while the aliens were capable of shooting energy blasts from farther away. His men were using the 40MM HE to knock the aliens over and make them duck—even direct hits did not kill them, though it certainly stunned them and took them out of the fight for several minutes. The 40MM Thermite/WP rounds on the other hand killed every alien they hit—nothing could take 5000 degrees of heat.

Graves knew he had to get someone out of this trap to warn his superiors, but they were surrounded, and this military unit was armed in such a way as to have the edge over his people. He directed the men he had left to concentrate their fire on one area while several attempted a break out. He had just given the final order when a taser caught him and stunned him, making him an easy target for a WP/Thermite round.

Major Tolner assessed the situation. Several of the aliens had gotten away; probably 5-7. He had 15 bodies or what was left of them. He also had 4 dead men and 7 wounded, 3 seriously. Almost 50% casualties; command was not going to be happy about that. But he did not see where they could have done better; overall they had been outgunned; only the fact that they had taken the aliens by surprise and had them surrounded had helped. He also thought that they had not been very well prepared to fight—that was his impression anyway. And they had still caused significant casualties. He hoped that there were not that many more of them out there. Or he was going to need a much bigger team. And a better armed one for sure.

Gerold was the most senior of the survivors; with Graves and his immediate assistants dead, he was the one who would have the unpleasant responsibility of making the report. In the meantime, he ordered the rest of the skins in town to prepare to move out immediately. They could not be sure that no one had had anything that would bring the military here; it was certainly possible since no one had thought that anything serious was going to happen. There were only 17 of them left now; The 6 survivors of the battle and the 11 who had remained in town. But leaving meant leaving their almost but not quite ready new skins there—no way could they take them with them. And without them, they would be all dead in the next year. Unless a ship was sent for them, and none of them really thought that that was likely.

The sheriff took the phone call and sat bolt upright after the first few words. He waited tensely for the message to end, and then said, "Understood," and hung up. The Military had found something—something big. The State Highway patrol had informed him that the area he had sent them to was now off limits until further notice by order of the Military—no explanation given. He sat and thought for a minute, then went into his address book and checked some numbers, and then called one. The short conversation made him even more tense. More military units and—most disturbing of all—some med-evac choppers had been sent to that site. His source told him that word was some kind of training accident using top secret weapons or something had happened, and there were casualties and a big investigation—all being done as quietly as possible. That told him that just maybe the Special Unit had run into some other aliens, and there had been a battle. Something that he had not believed was in any way possible. On the other hand, from a cold practical standpoint, that meant that the Special Unit now had real targets to go after and none of them were in Roswell. And that would also make himself look like a reliable source—something that might come in very handy in the future.

Major Tolner was being interrogated by 2 Generals and several colonels. They wanted him to go over everything he had seen and everything else again and again. It was getting mind numbing. The whole area was now crawling with troops and technicians with every kind of sensor and detector imaginable. All the alien bodies and pieces of bodies had been put in sealed bags, and those bags were then put in sealed metal containers and flown out. The General in charge told him that they wanted every possible bit of evidence that anything had happened removed by nightfall. They did not dare stay much longer, or word would get out that this was NOT a training accident. The repercussions of this day would be around for a long time to come—the first time Earth had fought against extra-terrestrials.

Liz had called a meeting for all those in the know to be at Tess's house at 7pm that Friday night. There was a lot to tell everyone, and they needed to discuss what had happened. The last week had been very eventful. The only ones not invited were Jeff and Nancy since they still did not know about Aliens. Liz had thought about telling Cynthia about the aliens but had decided that it was not yet time to go that route. She had also decided the next time she saw Duncan, she was going to pin him down as regards what Cynthia did—she knew for certain that Duncan had the info about that. She had a hunch that somehow Joe Dawson was part of it as well.

Max had dropped off Michael at Maria's where he was going to borrow the van. Then he would make the rounds picking up everyone except Liz since Max would do that. It was a closed van, so no one would know who was inside. Only the Sheriff and Kyle would be coming separately. This way no one would see any of the group with anyone else. It had been agreed amongst everyone that it was better that no gatherings would be done in any way so as to be noticeable. Tess's house had a two-car garage, so both Max's jeep and the van would go inside. The Sheriff would park his blazer at the back next to the fence—no one would be able to see it from any nearby road. All anyone would see passing by the house would be the SUV sitting in the driveway exactly as it usually was. Tess had even gotten heavy drapes for the windows so that even at night, no one could be certain anyone was home.

Liz looked around the spacious living room that they had worked into a casual meeting room by putting in a large number of easy chairs and bean bags. The Sheriff and Kyle were talking to Tess; Isabel and Alex were sitting together in adjoining bean bags; Maria and Michael were going at it as usual in another pair; and she was sitting in Max's lap in one of the easy chairs. She decided to get things started.

Putting both hands to her mouth she whistled... loudly. Everyone jumped and stared at her—that was something no one had ever seen her do. She smirked at them, ignoring the theatrical way Max was rubbing his ears.

"OK people, we have a fair amount to discuss tonight, so let's get going. First up is the Sheriff, and what he has got to say is pretty big." Liz sat back down in Max's lap.

The Sheriff stood up and walked to the center of the room so that he could face everyone.

"To say this is pretty big is a rather large understatement. Last Tuesday, the Major in charge of a special unit that I suspected might be alien related came by and wanted to know if something was going on. I figured he had heard something and decided to get him away from town. Max and the others last year had done some practice blasting on rocks southwest of town, and I directed him there. That turned out to be very fortunate for us. From a couple of sources, I have been able to piece together this much: something big happened there Tuesday afternoon. All sorts of bigwig military were flown in down there, other military units came in, and most importantly several medevac flights were made; a number of soldiers were killed and wounded. Everything points to them having run into some other aliens, and a big fight occurred. The hints I have been getting, mostly from a couple of medics on those flights who had some of the wounded soldiers drugged up on pain killers that also loosened their lips somewhat, is that they ran into some aliens who started the fight and had blasting capability as well as being invulnerable to most regular weapons. They still were able to kill most of them but took heavy casualties doing it, and it looks like some of the aliens escaped. Needless to say, this has really stirred some things up. They brought in yesterday some artist sketches of what some of the aliens looked like—they appeared completely human. Now the Major was just saying they wanted to question these people and wanted to know if I recognized any of them, but I could put two and two together. I did not, by the way—it seems pretty clear they were not Roswell residents. The Major gave a couple of hints that he did not think so as well but wanted to check. Apparently, they left in a couple of vans up a side road that they should not have been able to get such vehicles through but did; I can guess how they did. That was how they got past the State Patrol road blocks. Where exactly they are based is a good question, but I doubt it's very far away. And you can bet the Military is looking real hard at everything possible to find out. Considering this unit's priority and everything, they must have complete access to all satellites, and I do not see how the aliens could have gotten very far away without being spotted. My guess is they holed up somewhere until dark, and then went the rest of the way back to their home base. This means, for the time being, that all the areas around Roswell will be under a microscope by the military, and my advice to everyone is to stay in town until things settle down. On another note, Duncan McLeod got the necessary paperwork to me as regards Tess's background, and I was able to go to a judge and request temporary guardianship of Tess until her 18th birthday. There should be no further problems there; it looks all pretty cut and dried."

Needless to say this engendered quite a few comments from most of those present. Michael was very worried that the military might start looking through town as well, but the Sheriff told him not to worry; the Major pretty much had let him know that that was not going to happen—would attract too much attention. Now that did not mean that some plain clothes investigators would not be nosing around, but they would be confined to trying to find anything really fishy looking—as long as everyone kept a low profile, there should be no problems. Maria then snarked that as long as Spaceboy (her new nickname for Michael) did not do anything stupid, they were ok. Michael snarked right back that as long as Maria kept her mouth shut, there should be no problems, but they all knew that was impossible. There were a few comments about Tess's situation, but the sheriff made it clear that the house would stay as it was—it made a good meeting point, and for that reason alone, it was worth keeping. Nasedo had paid cash for it, so the only charges would be taxes and utilities. Tess would move in with him and Kyle. Maria then tweaked the Sheriff about the date he had gone on Monday with her mom—pointing out that since Amy DeLuca knew nothing about what was going on, he was going to have to be careful there. The Sheriff just shook his head and rolled his eyes at Maria.

Liz waited until the discussion died down before signaling that she was next.

"You all know that I was in Seacouver training with Duncan and then made a sudden trip back. You also know that Nasedo was killed. What only a few of you know was that it was me that killed Nasedo. Turns out he was a traitor and had made a deal many years ago—before even coming here—with the dictator who had originally killed the Royal Four. Just to recap for those who have not gotten the whole story: around 60 years ago, the Royal Four were trying to modernize the political structure of Antar into a more democratic and modern society from its relative feudal current structure. Kivar was one of those opposed to it, and he arranged for the murder of the Royal Four. Some of the relatives and friends of them arranged for the new Royal four to be born and raised on Earth so that one day they could come back and overthrow Kivar. I am guessing that the aliens that got involved in that fight were Kivar's troops who were here watching for any sign of the Royal Four. Apparently Kivar did not want to leave it just up to Nasedo and had a backup plan in effect. Now with most of them dead and the rest either holing up or on the run, that backup plan looks pretty well fried. Anyway, Nasedo's plan was to have Max seduced by Tess and her getting pregnant; then convincing Max and the others that the baby would not survive here, and they all had to go to Antar where, of course, Kivar would be waiting, and they would be killed, leaving the baby as a pawn of Kivar. Clearly, I was in the way, and Nasedo decided to remove me one way or another, and came to Seacouver. I went out walking one night, and Nasedo confronted me, and when I told him to stick it, he blasted me and boasted about what he was going to do as I died. He put me in the trunk of his car and drove to the bay determined to toss my body in the bay. When he opened the trunk, he got my sword in his chest, and then I beheaded him. The parts changed to a reptilian type after death, so we figured he was a different species which Tess later confirmed. She, by the way, had no idea of what was really going on; Nasedo had no problem selling her out as well, and she would have been dead too."

Liz paused for breath and to take a drink, then continued.

"One thing has become very clear—there were some Antarians that went with the ship, and what happened to them, no one knows; clearly Max and the others were supposed to be informed about their status and what they were supposed to do, but never were. Nasedo had been very busy sabotaging everything he could. I think now it seems certain that there will be no one showing up to help out. Which leaves one more thing: Nasedo once told Tess about something called the Granolith, which is apparently a very powerful machine that is a combination transportation device, immense library, and who knows what else. It's also something that Kivar badly wants as well. It is supposed to go with the Royal Four and be nearby to them at all times. So we can figure it's somewhere in this area, but who knows where? It's got to be hidden pretty damn well since the military right after the crash went over this entire area with a fine toothed comb and found nothing. Max and the rest only found the pod chamber because they could sense it. Apparently they cannot sense the Granolith since they would have as well when they spent all last summer going all around this area. That's all I have. Anyone else have anything to say?"

Once again, there was some general discussion, but no one had anything else to add that was new. After about another hour, things petered out, and they started to leave. It was decided to have a get together here once a month just to discuss things and iron out any problems that might come up.

Grace carefully looked around. She could see nothing but that was not necessarily comforting; this head hunter was stubborn and very persistent and not stupid. She had just finished her latest research assignment—and would have had to have left soon anyway since after 6 years there, some would have started to notice that she was not aging at all; having become Immortal at 28, and a fairly young looking 28 as well, she could not stay too long anywhere before that became a problem. But she was used to it after all these centuries, so no point in brooding about it. She had just left her home and was heading towards the center of town when she felt the buzz and looked around. A slender young looking man was staring at her. She walked over to a nearby bench and sat down. In broad daylight and with a fair amount of traffic around, he could not really do anything. Maybe for a change this would not be a challenge. Her hopes were soon dashed as he boldly walked up to her and said "My name is Ian Calder, and I challenge you. Where and when?" She had calmly looked at him and said, "My name is Grace, and I do not fight. Go find someone else to bother." His smirk grew, and he said then, "An easy quickening is still a quickening, and I will have yours." He then walked off. Grace had sighed and made preparations. However, he had proven rather smarter then he first appeared, and so far she had not been able to shake him. She had then taken the unusual step of flying to the US; she had been a European all her life and had never seen any reason to leave, but this situation had forced her to do so. She had been careful, and this had been the only flight to Phoenix that day from Paris, and he had not been able to get on it. Since the Concorde no longer flew, there was no way he could get to here anytime soon, and she would be gone quickly. She had decided to take a rental car and drive east and take a week or so doing it. Then head back to Europe, only this time somewhere east and out of the way. With any luck, the headhunter would lose interest and go after someone else.

Ian Calder cursed the slow movement of the passengers out of the airliner. He was already almost a day behind her, and he knew she would not linger. He had to find out what she had done after getting here. What she did not know was he had paid a pickpocket to make sure a small homing tracker was placed in her purse—it was small with limited range since he had to make sure that the metal detectors at the airport did not catch it, but it would help if he got close. He had a couple of pictures of her and intended to make it look like he was a PI on a divorce case; that and some money spread around should soon reveal where she had gone.

It took him several hours, but he eventually found out which rental car agency she had used, and was able to wile out of the clerk what model and make and color it was. He had a hunch she would head east and make sure she was not followed and then probably head back to Europe; he knew if he was going to catch her, it had to be in the next few days before she went back.

Grace pulled into Roswell and could not help but chuckle at the tacky alien-themed town. Aliens were about as likely as elephants on the Moon, though her practical nature reminded her that she was in no real position to argue about the laws of improbability. She had decided to stay the night here and then head to Dallas the next day. It had been 6 days since she had arrived in Phoenix, and there was no sign of the head hunter. She checked into a motel, and then decided to just wander a little before getting something to eat. The Crashdown Café just appealed to her for some reason, so she went inside. She had just sat down in the booth and started looking around at the Alien paraphernalia scattered around when she felt the buzz. She stiffened and looked around. She could not see him—could there be another Immortal in this town? Not likely, but not impossible.

Liz had just gone on shift and was headed out to start when she felt the buzz. She stopped dead and looked around her. Maria had been about to talk to her and noticed what Liz was doing.

"What is it Liz? Is there another around?"

Liz nodded slowly and moved towards the serving area. She looked down the booths and recognized most of the people here. It was about two weeks before Christmas, and so there were not many tourists around; mostly just regulars. She focused in on a woman in the middle booth on the left side; slender, taller than her, light brown hair, and quite attractive. Somehow, Liz knew it was her. She slowly walked towards the booth pulling out her order pad.

Grace observed the very young petite brunette in the tacky alien themed waitress uniform slowly approach her with a steady gaze that was returned just as steadily. She could not be more then 16 or 18 at most; yet it seems she knows about us.

"My name is Liz. I will be your server today. May I start you out with a drink first?"

Grace quietly ordered a soda and then asked for a menu. She just as quietly said. "I do not fight. If you know about everything."

Liz slowly nodded. "I prefer not to if possible, so I have no problem with that. Have you been part of the group for long?"

Grace smiled at that. Very well put so as to not attract attention. She may be young but she is no dummy. "Some of the group have been around a long time. Do you happen to know a Duncan McLeod?"

Liz's eyes widened. She nodded. "He found me and trained me."

Now Graces eyes widened. She had heard from a couple of Immortal acquaintances that Duncan had for the first time ever taken a female student. Here of all places? "I know Duncan from a long time ago—I had heard that for the first time, he had taken a female student, but I had no idea it would be here. How did that happen?

Liz smiled. "He just happened to have been in the right place at the right time, for which I will be forever grateful. I was very lucky."

Grace nodded. "He saved me a couple of times. There are no better in our group then he."

Liz nodded. "You will get no argument about that from me."

Grace relaxed some and ordered. After bringing her order, Liz told her once done to head towards the back of the diner. Grace was intrigued and did so. There, a blond waitress directed her up the stairs to the second floor. She walked up the stairs and knocked on the door. A pleasant looking woman in her 40's opened the door and told her to come in.

"Liz said that you were a friend of Duncan McLeod's. So make yourself at home. We know all about things, so don't worry about letting anything out of the bag."

Grace was astonished at the ease at which Liz's parents accepted her. She asked how they found out and was regaled with the story of the shooting and Duncan finding Liz. Grace realized that Liz had indeed been very lucky since she was able to continue her life without any real change. She then asked who else knew, and was informed that there were about half a dozen locally who knew. Friends and family. Grace admitted to herself that she actually envied Liz somewhat; her beginning period was certainly much easier than her own had been; much easier than most Immortals for certain.

Liz came into the apartments and told them "Was able to get a hold of Beth who is quite happy to work the overtime. She will be over in a few minutes, and Maria told me to go ahead, that she could cover for that time."

Her mother told her that they had filled Grace in on how things had started, and that they had gotten to the point where Duncan had been training her. Liz nodded and looked at Grace. "We can go out on the balcony—it's in the upper 60's, and with the sun, it should be comfortable out there." Nancy nodded to her daughter and told her that she understood that they wanted to talk in private.

Grace followed Liz out to the area above the first floor. It was set up as a relaxing area and looked quite cozy. In the sun, it was pleasant—not too warm and not too cold.

Liz was quite happy to talk to Grace; once she found out she was a doctor and researcher, she immediately wanted details.

Grace found Liz fun to talk to, and the young woman was quite intelligent and well informed; upon finding out her dream was to get a PHD in microbiology at Harvard, she shook her head sadly.

"Such a high profile place is not a great idea, and with your age as it is, trying to stay long enough to get a PHD, it would get very obvious that you are not aging. Even with makeup and being careful it would be very risky. I can understand your dream; I have always wanted to be a doctor and relieve suffering and save lives—that is why I refuse to fight. I will not go back on that vow no matter what. It's a shame you cannot do what you have dreamed of doing; I can tell you would be excellent at either treatment or researching. You have the touch."

Liz sadly nodded. "I realize that I will not be able to do it. For a while, I was being stubborn, but reality has forced its way into my thick skull. I talked to a Hollywood makeup technician, and he told me that it would be possible to age if I was very careful into my late 20's, but it would be very hard and take a lot of work. And it would be very easy for something to happen, and it all go up in smoke. To have to worry about that every minute of every day for years would be a pretty hard row to hoe. I am still determined to go to college, but it will have to be a large anonymous university where no one will notice. And then only long enough to get my four year degree. But I am determined to get that at least."

Thoughtfully, Grace nodded. That was possible and not too much to ask for. As long as she was careful.

Liz stretched and asked Grace if she had been around town at all. Grace admitted that she had just come here from her motel. Liz then asked if she wanted a tour of the metropolis that was Roswell. Grace laughed, and said why not—she had a car, and they could just wander the town.

Ian Calder had come into Roswell not certain that Grace had come this way, but he was hopeful. He had been able to track her a little, and it seemed she was heading on a fairly straight line east—probably headed towards Dallas and getting a flight back to Europe. He knew he had to catch her in the next day or so, or she would elude him. He had noted she did not seem fond of Interstates and preferred state highways or such. That was why he had come this way.

Cynthia had seen Liz get into a car with a strange woman and head around town. The first thought that there had been a challenge faded when they seemed to be taking a tour of the town. She wondered who she was. She followed them at a safe distance.

Ian Calder was startled when the beeper went off signaling that the bug was in range. He stopped the car and looked around. He checked the controller and noticed that it was getting stronger—he looked up just as a car passed him that he recognized as Graces—and there was another woman in the car with her—and if he could be certain from the buzz, he felt another immortal. Well he might just get two quickenings today. He started to follow them.

Grace felt the buzz first, but Liz was quick to pick it up. She was able to get a quick look at the car alongside the road and knew it was the headhunter. She quietly cursed. She had been sure she had lost him. How had he found her.

Liz looked at the way Grace had tensed up and put two and two together.

"Let me guess. A headhunter?"

Grace grimly nodded and filled in Liz on Ian Calder. Liz took out the cellphone that her parents had just gotten her and made a call. "Duncan? It's Liz. What do you know about a headhunter named Ian Calder?" she paused for a couple of minutes. "He apparently is chasing Grace who is with me." Another minute went by. "Thanks Duncan. I guess somehow you will find out how it all works out. Hopefully by a call from me. Thanks." She closed her cell phone and looked at Grace. "Duncan knows of him. Says he is a pretty low level headhunter—tries for newbies and the like. Just like Felicia Rising."

Grace had heard of her. "You sound like you know about Felicia—I had heard about her."

Liz grimly nodded. "She came here after my head a few months ago, and I gave her the short haircut."

That startled Grace a little. Liz had to be pretty good to have been able to take down an experienced Head Hunter so soon into her training.

Liz directed Grace down a side road to where she knew there was a level area that would do OK for a challenge. She was glad she had taken her sword with her.

Grace parked where Liz told her to, realizing what Liz intended to do. She tried to talk her out of it, but Liz was stubborn. She pointed out that the headhunter would come after Liz no matter what as well, so might as well get it over with now.

Liz got out of the car and started to warm up. Centering herself and preparing herself as Duncan had taught her.

Ian Calder slowed and finally started. The strange young girl was already warming up with her sword. Cocky little thing. As if that would help her. He got out and took his sword and moved towards her, swinging it around to loosen up.

Cynthia had noticed the strange car following Liz and the other woman and had a nasty hunch what was coming. She slowed and parked down the road some and got out and moved closer, trying not to be noticed.

Grace got out of her car, her heart in her throat. Intellectually she knew that it was true that the headhunter would have gone after Liz anyway; she still felt responsible. She hoped Liz was good enough.

Cynthia looked through her binoculars and realized the fight was about to start and said a prayer for Liz.

Liz decided to use some of the tricks Amanda had taught her. She felt no guilt at all about using them on a headhunter.

Ian went right at her determined to end it quickly with a quick underhand stab followed by an overhand slash.

Liz saw that while he had some experience, he was also a little sloppy and lazy. That would cost him. She blocked both but allowed herself to look a little off balance and deliberately stumbled backwards.

Ian smiled. This would not take long. He pressed the attack trying to keep her off balance. He did not notice that while she seemed off balance, she was blocking every attack he made.

Grace had not watched many sword fights, but she had seen enough to realize that Liz was trying to make herself look weak; trying to lure him into making a mistake.

Once again, Liz let herself look off balance and stumble while still blocking his attack.

Calder was starting to get frustrated and decided to push things. He sped up his attack.

Liz saw him speeding it up and getting sloppy, and decided that now was the time to make her move. She blocked his next attack, and instead of stumbling backwards, moved forwards and punched him in the nose.

Calder staggered backwards astonished at what she had done and the strength behind the punch. He did not have time to think more as she went on the attack, and suddenly he was backing off trying to regain his balance.

Liz pushed harder, knowing she needed to take advantage of the moment of him being off balance. She ducked right, slashed left, then slashed downwards, hitting his right leg with a deep cut.

Calder was now worried. She was a whole lot better than he had thought and a lot stronger then he had imagined she could be. Then the pain in his leg let him know he was in deep trouble.

She saw him glance down and knew he had made the fatal mistake. She feinted with a high slash, then stabbed straight towards him—right into his chest. Then she pulled it out as he fell to his knees. Wasting no time, she made the last move with a strong straight cut—and took his head.

Grace was astonished at how quickly the fight turned—Liz had suddenly gone on the attack and had quickly driven the headhunter back; and almost as fast as she could blink, Liz slashed his leg, then stabbed him right in the chest. Wasting no time, she had then taken his head.

Cynthia breathed a sigh of relief as Liz finished off the headhunter—for that is what he had to be. She looked around and realized another person had joined her and was watching the fight. When Liz finished it, he dropped his binoculars and turned towards her. "Sam Turner. Watcher to Ian Calder—well former watcher to Ian Calder. I take it you are the watcher for the girl that just took his head?"

Cynthia nodded and noticed another car had parked next to hers and Turner's. An older woman had gotten out and was headed their way. "Rebecca Robbins. Watcher to Grace. What has happened?"

Cynthia introduced herself and Sam. "I am Liz Parkers watcher. She just took the head of Ian Calder." They all turned as the light show that was the quickening of Ian Calder moving on started.

Liz moaned as the quickening hit her, dropping her sword and going down on her knees. Images and Memories hit her. Calder had not taken as many heads as Felicia had, but he had taken quite a few. All newbies or even some who had no idea what they were. A very unpleasant little rat. She hoped he and Felicia were roasting in hell together.

Grace went towards Liz as soon as the light show ended. She helped her to her feet over to the car and sat her down on the driver's side. She wondered what to do. Then she heard Liz's cell phone go off. She took it out of Liz's bag, idly knowing that it was lucky Liz had not kept it on her or it would have been fried by the quickening. She answered it.

Duncan knew he should wait but felt that if Liz had won it would be quickly. He had to know—he had not felt this protective of any of his students and wondered if it was because Liz was a young woman.

"Is this Duncan. It's Grace. Liz just took his head. She is recovering right now—she did very well. Tricked him into thinking she was an easy mark, then took advantage and ended it very quickly. You taught her well, Duncan. Now what do we do about the body?"

Duncan sagged in his chair. Amanda and Richie were in the office with him, having heard the phone call and just as worried as he was. He gave them the OK sign and they grinned and relaxed.

"Grace, do not worry about it. The body and everything else will be taken care of. I will fill you in later. Just take Liz home. You know, it would be nice to hear from you now and then."

Liz had recovered, and when Grace turned off the phone, she looked at her. "I can see why some get addicted to it—but it just wears me out. He was a real piece of work just like Felicia Rising, and I have no regrets about taking his head. But now I just want to go home and go to sleep."

Cynthia and the other two watchers observed Grace taking Liz home and waited until they were gone before doing anything. Sam told the two of them he would wait for directions for what to do about the body—this far out from major cities he would probably have to bundle it into his trunk and deliver it. He was not sure. Cynthia told Rebecca to stay with Sam in case he needed someone to drive the other car, and she would keep track of both of the Immortal women. She knew where Liz lived and would follow Grace there and let Rebecca know. If they needed a third driver, they should let her know—there actually were several people of the Watchers in town, and they should not have to wait for long.

Joe Dawson took the call from a watcher that he knew should be in Europe. When told he was in Roswell, he felt his stomach drop, then sagged in relief when told that Liz had triumphed again. When told that Grace was with her, he looked thoughtful, and after the phone call was over (he gave them the number of the senior man in Roswell—they would take care of the cleanup), he then called Duncan. And was told that Liz had called before the fight to get the data on Ian Calder. And that Grace had answered the phone right after the fight as Liz was still recovering from the quickening. Joe smiled at that and told Duncan that for once he was ahead of the game more so than the watchers. 


	2. Chapter 2

Liz was worn out by the time she got back to the Crashdown. It was only 3pm, but she felt ready for bed. She told Grace that she was going to get a few hours sleep and then meet her at her motel around 7 to go out and get something to eat. Liz had her sword wrapped up in her coat as she went in the back door to find Michael and Maria sitting in the break room going at it. Maria looked up as she came in, then widened her eyes and jumped up.

"Liz, did you have another fight? You are all messed up and you look like you just went through the ringer."

Liz nodded, sat down, and unwrapped her sword which still had blood stains on it. Michael handed her some paper towels and some cleaner. Liz told her story as she cleaned her sword.

"Grace and I were just touring the town when we felt a buzz, from a car parked alongside the road. Grace said a headhunter had been after her, but she thought she had lost him. Turns out she hadn't. SO I directed her to a place northeast of town that was pretty deserted, and I got out and waited for him. Turned out to be an unpleasant little shit by the name of Ian Calder—basically the male version of Felicia Rising. He was better than Felicia, but not that much better, and I was able to get him off balance and take him down before taking his head. His quickening was about the same as hers—he prayed on the helpless and weak and inexperienced. Just another vulture. Since Grace won't fight, he thought he was going to get two cheap quickenings—instead, he got the short haircut and hopefully is roasting in hell right alongside Felicia."

This had been repeated in a very matter of fact way while Liz cleaned her sword. Maria looked very closely at her friend. This unemotional and robotic Liz wigged her out. She was starting to worry that Liz was beginning to shut down her emotions all too much. Maria could understand having to do that while fighting—but to start doing that all the time was just wrong.

Michael was also beginning to worry about Liz. She seemed to be falling into the trap that many professional soldiers seem to go into—shutting down emotions and just getting it done. He could understand that for some of the time, but for someone like Liz to start doing it full time would be a very bad thing.

Liz finished cleaning her sword and wrapped it up in her coat again. She told them that she was tired and would be taking a nap for a few hours. Then she went upstairs.

Maria looked at Michael and said "I am going to talk to Alex; you get a hold of Max. I think we all need to talk about this. I think Liz is going down a dark road, and we need to detour her." Michael nodded and went over to the phone on the wall to call Max.

Liz walked into the apartment to find her Mother sitting in the living room reading a book. Nancy looked up and saw Liz carrying something wrapped in her coat—had to be her sword. She then noticed that Liz looked a little mussed up and somewhat dirty. Her eyes widened, and she exclaimed "Liz! Did you have another fight?"

Liz sighed and sat down and recounted the afternoon's events.

Nancy took a deep breath. Like Maria and Michael, she was worried about how unemotional Liz seemed to be about the whole thing. "Liz, just how are you feeling?"

Liz shrugged. "Tired. I am going to go take a nap. I told Grace I would meet her at her motel at 7 to go find a good place to eat that is not a tourist trap." She then went into her room, leaving Nancy thinking hard.

By 5pm that afternoon, they were all at Tess's house. Max, Maria, Alex, Isabel, Michael, Tess, Sheriff Valenti, and Kyle. Maria had talked to Nancy and had gotten a hold of Grace at the motel and convinced her to attend as well. She had also called Duncan, and he had agreed that Liz might be overcompensating, and told her that Grace might be a good person to talk this over with.

Maria took the floor first. "When Liz got back this afternoon and I asked her what had happened, she recounted the events like a robot; No real emotion or anything. Thinking hard about it, I realized that lately she seems to be going down that road more and more often, and I think that we have a problem."

Max reluctantly nodded. "It started right after her fight with Felicia, I think. It was pretty gradual, but I noticed it most when she got back after the mess with Nasedo. Outside of apologizing to Tess about killing him, she showed very little emotion. She seems to be shutting down more and more."

Sheriff Valenti looked thoughtful. "I have known more than a few professional soldiers over the years, and a lot of them are like that. It's a defense mechanism that allows them to get through that kind of life. I guess in a way, it's not surprising that Liz is doing it as well. But I agree that it might not be the healthiest thing for her to do."

Grace had sat back and listened and watched the group interact. It astounded her that Liz had let so many into her secret, but at the same time, it was clear they all cared about her and were worried. For someone like herself that had to continually move around over the centuries, having this many friends and caring individuals around her had never happened. She thought Liz was very fortunate indeed. Knowing Duncan and being acquainted over the years with a fair number of professional soldiers, she saw that Liz was indeed following that old road of shutting down your emotions. She also knew what that cost them as well. It was not the best thing for Liz even if it was understandable. She roused herself when Maria asked for her input.

"I am over 500 years old, a little older then Duncan. I have known a lot of professional soldiers over the years, and Liz is indeed following that pattern of emotional shutdown. Now many of them needed that to survive the horrors of war, but Liz really does not need to do that—and it is indeed unhealthy from a mental health point of view. The next step is usually to start distancing oneself from friends and family and start to become a loner. We Immortals to a certain extent are forced to do that since we have to continually move around so as not to attract attention to the fact that we do not age. Many do become loners and frankly very lonely. I try and counteract that by every now and then becoming the local doctor to a small community and thus interacting with people on a daily basis. Liz is vulnerable to this since she is still very young and while she is right now surrounded by you people and her parents, she is very aware that she will have to leave. I believe she is subconsciously trying to protect herself by sealing herself off now so that it will not hurt as much when she has to leave. All of you need to work on this—basically refuse to allow Liz to distance herself. It's not going to be easy since even though I just met her today, I already can see that she can be a very stubborn individual."

Max was thinking hard. IT all seemed very clear now what Liz was doing—he agreed with Grace that this was more than likely a subconscious thing on Liz's part rather than a conscious decision. An idea occurred to him, and he turned to Grace.

"Grace, is there any reason you have to leave soon?"

A little startled, she shook her head no. "I had already started to make preparations to move on when that headhunter showed up. All my household goods and professional books and papers are already in storage, ready to be shipped to wherever I settle down to."

Max nodded then leaned forward. "Do you have a problem with staying in Roswell for a while?"

A little mystified, she once again shook her head no. "You have an idea I take it?"

Taking a deep breath, Max nodded then started on his idea. "Liz has always dreamed of attending Harvard and getting her PHD and then one day becoming the head of research in Microbiology there, or somewhere equally as prominent. Being Immortal has shot that idea down, although she is firm about attending college somewhere. I think that realizing that that dream is gone is one of the reasons she has started to shut herself down. You probably know more about microbiology then any professor anywhere considering how many years you have been in the field, and have done research in different areas at different times. If you could stay here for say six months or a year, however long you can stand such a small town, and teach Liz what you can, that could very well help her right herself and get balanced again and get a proper perspective on things."

Tess was slowly nodding. "You could stay here. That way the sheriff could say he is renting out the house, and had decided not to sell it. And this place has a huge basement that is unfinished. You could probably set up quite a lab down there. That way, you could be doing research that Liz could help you with. Something else that would help keep her involved and interacting with people."

Grace sat back and thought. She owed Liz for getting rid of the headhunter, and she really wanted to see to it that Liz did not become a loner like all too many Immortals were. Alien tackiness aside, she kind of liked Roswell. This part of the US was certainly not a place that would attract Immortals; the two headhunters that had come here had been chasing others and had otherwise no interest in a place like this. Also she would be able to visit Duncan now and then, and she felt a little guilty about not staying in touch with him. She looked around at the others and nodded. "OK, I'll do it."

Max then looked at Isabel and then Michael and Tess, and jerked his head towards Grace. After a couple of minutes, they all nodded at him. He then got up and walked over to Grace.

"There is one secret that you should know since you are going to be here for a while."

Grace headed towards the Crashdown for her dinner engagement with Liz, still trying to come to grips with what Max had told her, then showed her. Aliens existed—and Irony of Ironies, right here in Roswell. She once again shook her head, still bemused. She had intellectually believed for a long time that alien life was certainly possible in the vastness that was the Milky Way galaxy. But having met some and realized that she would be living around some was a whole other matter that would take some getting used to. Still it was another reason that staying in Roswell for a while could be very interesting indeed.

Dominic's was a quiet Italian restaurant that did not cater to the Alien Theme like so many businesses in Roswell. It had very good food and was a very comfortable place to eat. Liz thought that Grace would appreciate it and she was right. Italian food was Grace's favorite, and she regaled Liz with stories about where some of the so called traditional Italian dishes actually came from and when. After eating, Liz asked her to come back with her to the Crashdown to sit on the balcony and talk. Grace decided that that would be a good time to tell her about her decision to stay. And that by chance, she had talked to Maria that afternoon, and she had had her talk to Sheriff Valenti and Tess.

Liz sat and pondered what Grace had told her. She was very happy that the Immortal woman would be staying for a while and more so that she had asked Liz to help out with some experiments and research that she would be doing once she got the lab going in the basement of Tess's house. She was also, however, wondering what had prompted this since she knew that Grace was a European through and through. So she decided to find out.

"What is the real reason you are staying Grace? Is it because of some kind of gratitude that I took out the headhunter? Sure you were the reason that he came through here, but that was pure chance. And once he knew I was here, he would have come after me sooner or later anyway. I know you are most comfortable in Europe, and this place is pretty far away literally and figuratively."

Grace had been prepared for that question—Liz was far too observant and sharp not to wonder.

"A small part is gratitude of course. But mostly, I have realized that this place would be quite a change over what I am used to, and that that might be the best reason to stay here. Maybe I have gotten into a rut as well. Add to that I will have a chance to visit Duncan now and then, and I was a little guilty about the fact I had promised to stay in touch, and I really have not. Doing some independent lab work and research is also appealing. And add to that is that maybe it's time I gave a little back to all those Immortals over the years who have helped me—Duncan saved my life several times, others like you have as well, and I have never really had anything to do with Newbies. And I sense a kindred spirit in you as regards research. We have a huge advantage over non-immortals in that we will with any luck be around for a long time, and thus, from a research point of view, can watch things develop over a really long-term period."

Thoughtfully, Liz looked at Grace and nodded. "OK, those are all valid reasons, but I get the feeling there is something else as well."

Grace sat and thought for a moment and then decided to be honest with Liz.

"Another part of the reason is that after talking to Maria and a couple others who know you pretty well, I found that they are worried about you. You are starting to close yourself off emotionally from others, even those closest to you. This is a common thing among Immortals, and it's understandable. It's also not the healthiest thing to do either. I have seen it happen and have nearly let it happen to me on several occasions over the centuries. It's something you have to guard against and fight it away when it comes. You are very lucky Liz in that you have been able to continue your life as it was—something very few Immortals are lucky enough to do. You have a pretty large number of people who care about you and know what you are. Don't let it go to waste by closing yourself off. Being immortal means to LIVE a long life; not just exist."

Liz had spent some time thinking about what Grace had told her as regards not cutting herself off from her friends and family. She truly had not realized that she had started to do that, but going back over the last couple of months, she could see that unconsciously she had been pulling back from those around her. She was determined to not do that again, and realized that she had to rely on those around her letting her know when or if she started to do it again. She decided that she needed to make a point of mixing with her friends more often; she had allowed herself to narrow her focus to school, working at the Crashdown, and training. That had to change.

Max had made a personal vow to make sure Liz interacted with her friends more often. He also thought that it would be better for Michael and Isabel to get out more as well and decided that involving them in the whole program would make everything better. He also felt, and he knew Michael was of the same mindset, that they needed to practice more as regards their own powers. While it was a good thing that the Military was apparently hot and heavy after the other aliens, they still needed to make sure they were ready for anything that might come their way. He remembered Liz offering to help by researching and trying to figure out if maybe they had other capabilities that they had not yet discovered. That would also be another way to keep Liz involved.

Grace had gotten right to work setting up her lab in Tess's basement. It was quite a large area, and should have more than enough room for what Grace wanted. Now it was a case of finding the equipment. After mentioning this to Liz, she had been surprised when Liz pulled out her cell phone and called someone. A quick conversation and Liz had her heading over to a clinic nearby that was where Liz had stayed for a while after her shooting to cover up her fast healing.

Liz had decided to start with Cynthia since she actually did work at the clinic. She remembered that one of the reasons they were able to set it up so fast was that a lot of the needed equipment was here in Roswell, left over from a couple of clinics that had closed. She wondered if some of that was still here, and if so, then maybe it would help getting Grace set up.

Cynthia was a little surprised that Liz wanted to see her at such short notice. She wondered what it was all about. Maybe about what happened to the body of the headhunter? If so, she would have to fudge a little. Sam Turner had not had to wait long before some Watchers showed up and took care of the body. She was at the reception desk when Liz showed up with Grace.

After introducing them, she got right to the point as regards the equipment. Cynthia motioned them to follow her to see Dr. Levins, who had decided to stay at the Roswell Clinic rather than return to the Deming Clinic.

Dr. Levins listened to what Grace wanted and then pulled out the list of items he knew were still in storage in Roswell. He gave it to her and watched as she ran down the list, putting checkmarks to items she could use. She looked at him and said, "About 2/3 of what I need is on this list. The basic lab equipment, centrifuges, Bunsen burners, etc. is there. Also standard microscopes. What I will also need is a basic Electron Microscope; that will probably be the toughest item to get. Pretty much everything else are standard items I can get fairly easily."

Dr. Levins considered the electron microscope. He thought that he knew of one available at a lab that was closing in Albuquerque, but he would have to check. Grace sounded like she was putting together a very complete compact lab. But then he had heard of her before—she had been doing medical and biological research before anyone had invented the terms. He was willing to bet it all had something to do with Liz. He knew that Liz had a big interest in Microbiology; Grace looking as if she was staying for a while and putting together her own lab pointed towards her beginning to teach Liz the basics at least.

He called the lab he was thinking of and was pleased to find out that they indeed still had the Microscope; they also had a Spectroanalysis Machine which was something he was willing to bet Grace would want as well. He let Grace know about the equipment, and from the way her eyes lit up as regard the Spectro, he was not surprised that she put in her bid for that as well.

Armed with the address of the warehouse where the equipment was being stored, Liz and Grace headed over to take a firsthand look. The fact that the realtor was there waiting for them by the time they got there was a good indication that he wanted to get rid of the equipment as well. Liz called up Maria (who she knew was home right now) and asked if she could come over with the van; they could pick up a lot of the equipment right away. Grace looked over what was available in the warehouse and was pleased to see that there were mundane things like lab tables and such that would also be needed. She huddled with the Realtor to haggle about the price while Liz wandered around looking out of curiosity.

Maria arrived half an hour later with the van just after Grace and the Realtor had come to a deal on the equipment. Fully 2/3 of what was left in the warehouse would be going to the lab. Looking at it all, Liz estimated that it would take a couple of trips even if they packed the van to the gills. She also considered the muscle end of things and called Max. He agreed to collar Michael and come on over to help out.

Michael had not been all that enthusiastic about helping out, but Max told him that if he didn't, it would give Maria more ammunition to chew on him about, and did he really want that? A very convincing argument.

It actually took three trips, but it was all in Tess's basement by 6PM, and they all went to Dominic's to eat—Grace telling them it was on her. Cynthia had to turn down the invitation, claiming an early shift in the morning (actually figuring that maybe she should not spend THIS much time with her Subject). Liz had tweaked Grace a little on that mentioning that she should know that Michael Guerin was a renowned bottomless pit. That set the tone for the evening, and a fun time was had by all.

Grace was astonished how easily she was fitting into this relatively young group. Of course, it helped that in many ways, all of the teens had aged years beyond their chronological years. They were not having to worry about forbidden subjects and secrets (they had gotten a double table right at the rear of the restaurant), and tonight it was not particularly busy; there was no one close enough to overhear them. Grace thought that spending a year or so here would be a nice change, and she thought she would be very comfortable here.

Maria in particular, after finding out that Grace had known Duncan for at least a couple of centuries, begged for some stories about him. Her normal taciturn nature in regards to Immortals somewhat loosened up by a couple of glasses of wine; she went into some fairly juicy details about their first meeting and the results of it. Maria then of course asked, "So is he as good as he looks like he would be in bed?" Liz's cry of "Maria" completely failed to stop or even slow her down. In somewhat of a glow due to the wine and fun company, Grace gave a somewhat enigmatic smile and said, "Tremendous."

Being as it was a school night, the gang reluctantly headed home around 9. Grace had already moved into Tess's house, so she went alone back there while Max took Liz home (Maria and Michael decided that bickering was enough fun that they would head back together).

Duncan called Liz the next afternoon and asked her how long Grace was going to stay. On being informed that she might be there for a year or more, Duncan was a little startled. Knowing how comfortable Grace was in Europe, he was a little surprised that she was willing to stay that long. Liz said she thought that part of it was the novelty; part of it was being truly out of the way and not having to worry about headhunters; and part of it was Grace thinking she owed Liz something. Duncan nodded thoughtfully to himself and agreed that Liz was probably about right on it. He let her know that he would be coming down for a few days the following weekend and thus could help Liz stay sharp. Liz told him that she was always glad to see him, but that he should pencil in some time to spend with Grace. Duncan said that that was part of the reason he was coming.

After getting off the phone, Duncan decided to head over to Joe's and let him know his subject would be out of town in Roswell for a few days. Upon walking into the Bar, Duncan spotted Methos in his usual spot with his usual beer. Sitting down next to him and ordering a beer, he waited for Joe to come by.

Joe saw Duncan come in and finished his set. Wandering over to the bar, he relieved Sam of his "problem children" and sat down and waited for Duncan to let him know why he was there.

"Just talked to Liz, and she told me that Grace would be staying for a while in Roswell, setting up a lab and teaching Liz the basics of Microbiology. Grace can probably teach in one year what a university would take four to do. From what Liz said, she thought that the novelty and being out of the way appealed to Grace right now. That and helping out Liz partially out of gratitude for getting rid of the headhunter. I will be heading down there next weekend for a few days. Most of that to spar with Liz but some of it to spend some time with Grace. We have not really talked in a long time."

Liz had called Max and asked him to drop by the Crashdown Saturday morning at around 11 just before her shift ended. A little mystified but quite happy to comply, Max agreed. When he got there, he found Liz finishing her shift and motioning for him to go upstairs. Still in the dark, he nodded and headed up the stairs, and knocked on the apartment door. Nancy let him in and told him to go out on the balcony, and Liz would be right with him. It was only a few minutes later when Liz joined him, holding a notepad. He looked at it and raised an eyebrow as he looked at Liz. She grinned at him and proceeded to let him know what was going on.

"Alex and I have over the last month or so done all the research we could on mental projection of various powers. We have no idea if any of you can do these, but we can try and find out. Since no instructions were left with you and apparently no one survived except Nasedo, we might as well take a shot at finding out your limits this way. We know you can all project energy, and you can heal, Max; and Isabel can enter dreams; and Tess can apparently make people see things that are not there. But I believe there is more to be found. You said you can change items at a molecular level; I think you can also do other things on that area as well. Such as heat water molecules and form a fog bank; or say overheat a tire on a pursuing vehicle; maybe move rocks instead of blasting them, and so on. So let's start now." Liz pointed at a rock about the size of a soft ball sitting in the middle of the balcony.

"Concentrate on that rock, Max, and see if you can move it; first by using your mind only, then by pointing your hand at it and using your mind."

Max took a deep breath and concentrated on the rock for several minutes, but it did not move. Then he pointed his hand at it and concentrated again; the rock rose up a few inches; he moved his hand, and the rock moved with it; then he let it down. And took a deep breath.

Liz was very pleased and wrote down on her notepad a checkmark against telekinesis.

"Now use your hand and concentrate on heating water molecules."

Max did this, but nothing happened.

"OK—try just heating and pointing your hand."

Max did so, and they could both see shimmering heat waves.

Liz nodded and wrote down—heating air.

She then pointed at a plastic bucket full of water—"Use your hand and heat that water."

Max did, and in a couple of minutes, the water begin to bubble, and the bucket began to melt—at which point he stopped.

Liz wrote down—can boil water at a distance.

"Now use your hand and see if you can freeze that water"

Max found that it took longer and more exertion, but he could freeze the water.

"Max, see that piece of paper laying on the floor—see if you can set it on fire."

It took even more exertion, but he was able to cause it to catch fire.

Liz wrote down—pyrokinesis—but not quickly.

Liz then got up and picked up some small nerf balls.

"Max, I am going to throw these at you—see if you can raise a shield to stop them."

Liz then started to throw them at him—the first one hit, but the second and third bounced off some kind of shield. Liz nodded and made a note. "We are going to have to work on that and see how strong the shield is. Ideally, we would like one that could stop bullets."

By now Max was starting to sweat and was breathing heavily. Liz sat down and pulled out a cold bottle of water from a cooler she had sitting there and handed it to Max who drank down the pint in about 10 seconds. "I think that is plenty for now, Max. We now know you can do other things. I bet Isabel and Michael and Tess can as well. It's just a matter of trial and error, and time."

It had been 10 days since the battle with the Aliens and the military had left no stone unturned to try and find where they had been based. It had been established that they had somehow gotten the two vans that were apparently parked nearby (intensive study of the ground and tire tracks had established that they were vans) over a rough road over the mountains—totally unexpected. Major Tolner had had a team studying satellite photos of the area, and finally after several days, they were able to spot the vans heading north then west and then north. They were able to track them to the north of Albuquerque, but not any further. But they had identified the vans as Dodge Ram 3500's. Then the DMV records for New Mexico and Colorado were gone over, and it was found that 2 white Dodge Ram 3500 Vans were owned by what was called the Friendship League in Copper Summit, Colorado. Which was in line with where the two vans were headed when they passed beyond the satellite photos available. Further investigation of the supposedly non-denominational group found that it had been established only 3 years after the Roswell Crash. Now it was determined that the Aliens from the crash were not the same kind as they had just fought—but the timing was just too close to be a coincidence. Only one thing argued against that, and that was the distance from Roswell. And back in 1950, it would have taken a lot longer to get to Roswell than it did now. The local county sheriff was asked quietly by the FBI about the Friendship League and was told they were harmless. He was asked to check their status, and a day later, came back and told them that there appeared to be a much smaller number of them. He had not asked any questions but had noticed that the small town was even smaller. As far as Tolner was concerned, that was enough to swoop down on the small town—and his superiors agreed. It was decided in 48 hours to surround the town and move in.

Courtney had not been one of those selected to go on the data hunt for which she was quite happy about, especially considering what happened. Since almost 10 days had gone by and no one had noticed anything suspicious in the immediate area, the rest of them were starting to relax. But not her—she thought it was just a matter of time. She was very well aware of the satellite capability of the Military and figured it was just a matter of time before they identified the vans and then traced back their ownership to here. Courtney had quietly and secretly been planning a way out for herself—she had managed to scrounge an extra skin and had managed to get it FED EXED to a PO Box that she had gotten online in Roswell—figuring if she got out that would be the last place the Military would look for her. Without the chambers, it would take longer to get the skin ready, but she felt she had at least one more year before her current skin gave out on her. She had been careful over the last few years not to exert herself as much as possible, and that had given her a time edge over the rest of them. She had gotten also quietly a small Kawasaki 100 motorcycle which should be sufficient to get her to Roswell—and if necessary escape Copper Summit much easier than a car. She had decided to head out that night—by pushing the cycle out of hearing range of anyone in town, then taking a dirt trail up and out. It was a full moon and clear—which should be just enough light for her to make it.

Major Tolner, for the fourth or fifth time, checked the deployment of his troops. He had much larger force this time—almost a full company. They had managed to scrounge enough street sweeper type 40MM's and about a dozen more super tasers. He had ordered them to start to deploy around 2AM. They would move into town from all sides at sunrise.

Courtney had just gotten the cycle up the dirt trail to the top of the small mountain by midnight when she noticed the vehicles starting to converge on it and decided to take a chance and keep going. She was not using the light on the cycle and hoped that they could not hear it. She got lucky—and made it down a hill and into a dry stream bed just before the HUM-V's passed her. She shut off the cycle and waited until the vehicles got out of earshot, then started it up and quickly moved down the road—light still off.

Major Tolner waited until the first faint light from the coming dawn hit the town and ordered the troops to move in.

Gerrold had just woken up and had moved downstairs in his house when he saw military troops moving in a line approaching the town. He froze in horror for a moment, then instinctively hit the alert button that would ring in every residence in town. He knew it was futile as he saw that they would probably be outnumbered 10 to 1, and these troops had certainly been briefed on how to fight. He was determined not to be captured and experimented on, and he was confident that the rest of them felt the same way.

Major Tolner sighed as he observed the burning town—probably 90% of the buildings were burning and while an occasional shot was still heard, he doubted that any of the aliens were left alive. He had no reports of any surrenders or captures and really did not expect any. However, the second line of troops had reported that no one had made it past them, and he had no reason to doubt that. They had caught them totally by surprise. He just hoped that this was the end, and that no more were left out there.

Courtney made it to Roswell by 6PM. She had ditched the bike just in case as soon as she got to Albuquerque and had taken a bus from there to Roswell. She had carefully been planning to get out for several years and had managed to steal and save and convert items in town to cash. She had enough to last her a couple of years if necessary. But first, she had to start getting her new skin ready. She had made contact a few weeks ago and had managed to get a small apartment all ready to go. She just had to see the realtor, sign the paperwork, and pick up the keys. She spent the night in a small, cheap motel. She had watched the news with interest at 10PM, and they had mentioned a fire in a small Colorado town that had burnt most of it down and killed several residents. Due to worries about toxic gases from some small factories, the authorities were keeping everyone except emergency personnel out of the town. Courtney shook her head. She had just barely made it out. She was pretty certain that no one had surrendered and that everyone was dead. And she felt that she was in the clear since there would also be no one to point out that one was missing.

Max had told Isabel, Tess, and Michael about the experiments Liz had tried, and that she thought there was a good chance they all had abilities and ways to use their powers that they had never tried or even thought of. Michael was very interested in finding out what they could do; the girls less so. But they all agreed that it would be a good idea to find out their limits, and you never knew when extra powers might come in handy. It was decided that they would all get together at Tess's house and try out some of the ideas Liz had had. Grace was called, and told them that the Lab Equipment that was coming from Albuquerque would be in the Friday, and that the day after would be a good time to try things out. Also, Duncan would be in that weekend, and extra input could not hurt. Not to mention, it would be a good thing to have extra people around to put the lab gear in the basement and start getting it ready.

Liz and Alex had gotten together that Saturday evening since Max was worn out and went home early; Liz filled him in on what they had found, and they brainstormed some more as regards other possibilities. Alex admitted that a lot of what they were looking at was bad science fiction, but Liz pointed out that since it could be said they were LIVING bad science fiction so what? It was decided to have the whole gang come to Tess's house on that coming Saturday and have another full meeting.

Major Tolner was going over the briefing paper he was going to have to give to a big wig coming in from the Pentagon for a full report on the activities of the last 2 weeks. They had found parts of aliens and had figured that there were 10 left in the town, and they had killed 15 at the previous battle; and they had not found anything to indicate that there were any left—at least from THIS group. There had been hints that possibly one of the Roswell aliens had escaped, but if so, that one had kept a very low profile since. Of course, it could be argued that the Copper Summit Aliens had done a good job of staying out of sight as well. One thing that was very interesting is that the examination of the alien bodies had shown that they could not survive in this kind of atmosphere; what they had were a kind of environmental suit that appeared to be permanent. Once it was breached, they died very quickly; but it was very tough to penetrate. Only the Thermite/Phosphorus rds had been able to do that; direct hits from 40MM HE rds had not been able to do it. It was thought that it would take something along the lines of an AT-4 84MM HEAT warhead to do it. The Thermite/Phosphorus rds penetrated by heat alone. 5000 degrees is a lot for ANYTHING to withstand. They had gone through the wreckage of the buildings, and in one, had found what looked to be chambers of some kind—and what appeared to be new suits that were being grown inside. So that argued that the suits then would last approx 50 years and then had to be replaced—assuming this was the first time they had to do so. There was no trace of any kind of ship at all which was probably not a surprise—they were probably dropped off, and the ship left. And it was not like it would have been noticed in 1950 anyway with the state of the radar of the time. He wondered what the mission of his unit was going to be now that they had fought their first hostile alien force. The question of course was—are they all that were here?

Courtney found that she was able to settle in fairly quickly. She was busy putting together what would be needed to get her new skin ready. She could put together a new chamber fairly easily—it would not have to withstand high pressure or high temperature, so common materials like aluminum and heavy glass would do. The power source would be a little tricky since she had to have one that would not be affected by power outages—which meant setting up a generator and a system of batteries to make sure there would be no loss of power which could critically damage the skin when it was in its final phase of development. She reluctantly realized that it could not be done in her apartment, and she would have to find somewhere else—an abandoned building or warehouse which of course would be a problem in itself. However, she did have some time, so she would just have to start looking around town. And in the meantime, she could start building the chamber.

Michael was in the local Home Depot getting some parts for the toilet in his apartment which had started to leak. He was just pushing his cart down the aisle towards the rear where building materials were on display, more out of curiosity and boredom than anything else, when he passed by a cute blond looking at some heavy gauge aluminum sheets—and felt a weird prickling that he had never felt before. He managed not to stop but kept on going until he was out of sight. Then he parked his cart in the next aisle and carefully went back to observe without being seen. The blond picked up some sheets and put them on the big dolly—and did it rather easily for someone of her size and build. That further got Michael on edge—extra strength and setting off his senses was NOT a good thing. He watched her go on down and started looking at some other aluminum beams, and decided to take a chance and get to a pay phone and call Max. He was lucky in that the Home Depot was within walking distance of his apartment, but if he was going to follow the blonde, then he needed wheels.

Max listened to what Michael said and told him he would be there in about 20 minutes. He too was a little worried—the extra strength part might not be such a big deal, but the sense thing was. They had never gotten anything like that off of Nasedo, according to Tess, and not even Liz or any of the Immortals felt different to the hybrids. And they felt nothing between themselves. So to run into someone that did was something they could not ignore.

Michael was glad the blond was taking her time—she certainly was gathering an interesting mix of items. Luckily that evening, the store was fairly busy, so she was having to wait in line for a while. Michael had decided to get the stuff he was originally there for so as to look just like another customer. She had just checked out and was wheeling her dolly to a pickup—which looked like a rental—when Max pulled into the parking lot. Michael went right over to him and got in and pointed to the blond. She was rather casually loading a fair amount of heavy items into the back of the truck and certainly did not appear to be straining. They hung back and followed her to a small apartment complex in the north end of town. It was about ¾ of a mile away from where Tess's house was—right on the edge of the developed part of town. They waited until she took the last load inside, then followed her inside, trying to keep their distance. She was on the first floor and they got the number of her apartment then checked the PO Boxes in the lobby—the name Courtney Williams was on the box with her apartment number. They then left to contact the others and try and figure out what to do next.

Max wasted no time in getting a hold of Sheriff Valenti and letting him know that they might have run across another alien. The Sheriff promised to see what he could find out. Max was able to give him the license plate number of the rental truck as well. Max then told Liz what was going on, and Michael called Tess; Max would tell Isabel when he got home. They agreed that there did not seem to be any great hurry—though what she was going to do with the materials she had bought was an interesting question in itself.

Liz was very interested in what Max told her; she had to agree that the blond sounded suspicious. She remembered that Methos had mentioned that he was able to sense just barely the hybrids—she wondered if he could sense this one as well. She decided to call Duncan.

Duncan listened to what Liz had to tell him and agreed that they probably needed Methos to get close enough to her to see what kind of vibe if any she gave off. He thought that it was very interesting that Michael could sense her, but apparently she could not sense him. He decided to head down to Joe's and see if his luck was running good and that Methos would be there.

Joe had just finished his set and was heading to the bar when he saw Duncan come in. Him visiting twice in just a few days was fairly rare—so he wondered if anything was up. He then saw the way Duncan looked around and then went right to where Methos was and figured that something was up.

Duncan sat down next to Methos and got right to the point. "Feel like another trip to Roswell?"

Methos took a long draught from his beer and fixed Duncan with the gimlet eye. "I take it there is a good reason for me to go there?" Joe had arrived just in time to here the question and semi answer.

"What's up Duncan?"

"Liz just called. Michael was in a local store when he passed by a young blond, and he got a strange buzz type feeling from her. He called Max, and they followed her to her home—she displayed some surprising physical strength as well. Max was also able to get close enough to her to get the same feeling—and apparently she did not sense anything from them. Since Methos was the only one to get anything from the hybrids, she thought it would be a good idea to see what he got from the blond."

Methos looked thoughtful. "Another different one?" He did not say alien since he did not want to take a chance on someone over hearing that. Liz had called Duncan and had given a carefully worded account of what apparently happened near Roswell the day after they got word from the Sheriff. Methos had done some checking (Joe had as well), and nothing they had found out contradicted what was suspected. It was getting stranger and stranger. "Well it's not like I am very busy at the moment, so why not? I have to admit to some curiosity."

Joe and Duncan looked at each other and grinned. The fact that he admitted to any curiosity at all was very unusual for the ancient Immortal.

Courtney looked at the material that currently filled her guest bedroom and decided to get started. She had only rented the truck for 2 days, and she wanted to make sure she would not have to make any more trips then the other one she would need to pick up the glass. She thought she had most of what she would need to get started. She would not need the electrical parts and other items for a while.

Liz was waiting at the local airport for the commuter flight bringing Duncan and Methos. She and Maria would pick them up and drop them at the rental car place downtown—Duncan made it a habit to never use the same rental car service twice if at all possible. Part of the ingrained habit of a seasoned Immortal in keeping a low profile. Maria was very interested in the new possible alien in town but was not very worried since it appeared she was alone. She had remarked to Liz when told that overall the aliens were causing less trouble then Immortals, so it was probably a good thing. They had brought the van since Maria's car was rather small. And this way no one would be able to see inside and see who was in it.

Duncan was glad to get off the small airplane—he found that he did not like the smaller ones now that he had had a long time to get used to full size airliners. Methos was much more blaze about it and tweaked Duncan for being antsy. "You remember what it was like in the 20's and 30's—this is an airliner compared to them." Duncan just ignored him as he greeted Liz and Maria. They piled into the van after picking up their sword cases from the baggage claim. One thing Duncan did not like about the current security situation was that there was no way they could bring the swords with them into the passenger cabin no matter what anymore.

After being dropped off at the rental car place, Maria and Liz went home and let Duncan and Methos settle into the apartment above the clinic. It was fairly late, and they all knew Saturday was going to be busy.

Grace was busy getting her lab organized—only the heavy tables, the Electron Microscope and the Spectro machine had to be brought down from the garage where they currently resided. The other tables and equipment were already down in the basement and set up. Meanwhile, she had to admit that the word on a possible new and different alien was very intriguing. It had to be no coincidence that she would come to town right after the battle with aliens outside of town; and the word that they had gotten quietly from the Sheriff that the Military had found the home base of the aliens and had taken it out—apparently accounting for all known aliens in the process. Liz had asked her if she could do a DNA analysis if they were able to get a sample somehow, and Grace had told her that once her equipment was up and running, that she could do a pretty detailed one. Better than the one Methos had done at New Mexico State. The only question was, how were they going to get the sample without her noticing. Liz felt that a hair sample was their best bet. They could arrange for one of them to bump into her, distracting her while another sniped a hair sample. Things were getting fairly busy with Christmas only a little more than a week off. Luckily school was out until after New Year's, so they would have plenty of time to work on their various projects—especially the new one that had just come up.

Tess had been a little surprised how easily she was able to get along with the Sheriff and Kyle—though right off the bat, she had made it clear to them that the house was no longer a bachelor pad, and that it would be cleaner and better kept than it had been. Forced to learn to cook out of self-preservation, since Nasedo had a very limited and strange diet, Tess, to her surprise, had found that she liked to cook and had gotten pretty good at it. Certainly better then Kyle and the Sheriff. So she took over the kitchen immediately. Having someone around who actually cared about her was a big change and one she found very comforting. And she had to admit, Kyle was cute. She just had to do some work on him to make him presentable in civilized society.

It had been decided that early on the Saturday, they would all head out to Tess's to get Grace's lab equipment set up and going, then work on getting the DNA sample from the blond. Liz and Duncan would also do some sparing that day, and a lot more on Sunday and Monday. Duncan had tentative plans to head back that Tuesday, but let Liz know that if she needed him to stay for an extra day or two, that would not be a problem. Of course, now with the possible new alien in town, that was a lot more probable than it had been. Max and the others would also start testing out to find out what powers they actually had and what the limits were. All in all, it looked like it would be a busy next several days.

Max picked up Liz at 8AM on Saturday; Isabel and Alex would be driven in by Maria. Max passed by Michael's apartment and picked him up, and they went right to Tess's House. They were the first ones there and found Grace already waiting for them in the garage to get the heavy items down to the basement. Max and Michael agreed they would start, but not exert themselves that much until the rest of them got there. Liz and Grace went down to the basement and examined the proposed areas for the Electron Microscope and the rest of the equipment. Liz thought that Grace had things pretty well thought out and told her so. They then moved on to discussing the possible new alien and the steps they were working on to positively identify her.

Maria, Alex, and Isabel arrived about half an hour after Max, Liz, and Michael. To be followed only minutes later by the Sheriff, Kyle, and Tess. Once everyone got together, they went to work lugging the heavy stuff down the stairs to the basement. That only took about half an hour. Then came the meeting where the main topic of discussion was the new alien. It was agreed that they needed to find out for sure if she was. Liz let them know that Duncan and Adam would be over in a little while, and Adam was the one they needed to get close to her. Isabel suggested that they phony up a survey and have Adam doing that door to door. Alex immediately remembered something that was going through town and got on his laptop and got on the Roswell City page and found it. He was able to download it and print it on Grace's new printer. So that took care of getting Adam close to her. Getting the DNA sample would be a little more tricky—they needed her out in public for that to work. Michael volunteered to start doing surveillance, but it was pointed out that he would be kind of conspicuous around there since it was a pretty quiet, new area of town. Alex then came up with an idea—he was able to find at the Local Sam's Club a cheap surveillance camera that could be powered by batteries and would have a wireless link. After some discussion, they figured that they could set it up so that a periodic observation/download would give them an idea of her movements. It might take a week or so, but it was thought that that would be the best way.

The Sheriff reported that his background check showed no obvious discrepancies, but if one knew what to look for, you would be able to see through a manufactured background. She was supposedly 22, had just moved from Denver Colorado after graduating from Colorado State University. Her parents had died in a car accident just a couple years ago, and she was currently living off the life insurance. That would explain not having any job references. Or Income Tax returns. Her transcript was fairly normal and would not stick out—just a standard BA of Liberal Arts. The Sheriff was willing to bet that a much closer examination would find no evidence that she had ever really attended the school. However, he did say that this one had been done and updated over the last few years so that it would look a lot more normal. Very professionally done in several ways, but the signs were there if you were familiar with manufactured backgrounds.

Duncan and Adam arrived shortly after the Sheriff finished his report. Adam, upon being informed on how he would be meeting the new alien, was not particularly happy about the method but agreed it would be the quickest way to get it done. It was decided that Maria would drop him off and wait nearby, and they would head right out as it was getting close to 9:30 and would be a good time to do it. Duncan told Liz to get out her sword, and they would spar in the time being. Also, the hybrids could work on their powers while the rest of them would help Grace get the lab up and running.

Maria dropped Adam off a block away, then found a parking place next to a branch of a local bank where she could see the entrance of the apartment building. Adam casually walked into the lobby, and after checking the apartment number of Courtney Williams, was pleased that she was the second one in that row. He would go to the first one and then to hers, and then leave.

Methos had figured out how to make it go more quickly by getting a couple of envelopes and having Alex have them filled out by the printer and he put a couple of stamps on them, that way the people could fill them out when they wanted to and then just drop them in the mail. Since the whole thing was just to get him close to Courtney once, that should do the trick. He was even luckier when no one answered at the first apartment. He then went to the next apartment and knocked on the door.

Courtney had been working on the chamber for over an hour and was actually happy to be interrupted. She went to her front door to find a fairly attractive man in his late 20's wanting her to fill out a survey. He handed the papers to her and mentioned that the SSAE would make it very easy to send in and to have a nice day. Courtney shrugged and dropped it into her waste basket, a little disappointed he had not stayed longer.

Methos walked out the door of the building and signaled to Maria who came right over.

"That was quick. So is she or isn't she?"

"There certainly is something there; different than Max and the others. About as strong, but different."

"Great. Another one. Well at least we hope there is only one."

"That might be all that is left if the Sheriff's info was correct. She might have decided to get out and was smart enough to have made arrangements ahead of time. No way was any of this done recently."

"That could make her a problem if she is smarter than the average alien."

Methos had to smile at that one.

Liz and Duncan were going hard at it while the hybrids were trying out their suspected new powers. Tess and Isabel found out that they could pretty much do the same things that Max had done, and since Tess had described how her mindwarps worked, and Isabel already knew that she could get into dreams, they decided that going into those areas might be more up their alley. Max and Michael started working on the shield which they thought might be the most useful power to work on at the moment. Duncan was pushing Liz hard and making her sweat quite a bit, which tended to distract Max, and Michael had to bring him back to earth several times. It had not taken the Sheriff, Kyle, Alex and Grace as long as they thought to get the lab equipment up to the point that they could—there would have to be rewiring done, but the Sheriff knew someone who owed him a favor who could do it quietly. They then went up and sat on the back porch and watched Liz and Duncan sparing and the hybrids working on their powers.

The sheriff was very interested in the shield that Max and Michael were working on. They had reached the point of being able to deflect rocks and the like—but the real test would be if they could stop bullets and energy blasts. The Sheriff told them they would have to go out in the hills to really try and see if they could stop bullets since the sound of the shots would attract too much attention here. However, they were able to test the blast part to a certain extent; Max put up his shield and Michael tried to penetrate it with mild blasts which were stopped. As he ramped it up Max began to sweat and strain, and they both agreed to not try right now with Michael's full blasting capability. Isabel and Tess grabbed Alex and Kyle and used them as guinea pigs for being distracted and seeing things. They found out that while Tess was better at manufacturing things to distract them, Isabel was better at making them think they saw something they actually did not. Tess was able to reach the point where you actually had to try and touch the things to see that they actually did not exist.

Duncan finally allowed Liz to rest after almost a full hour workout. He was glad to see that not having a sparring partner for a time had not make her sloppy or careless, and she still seemed sharp. Of course just recently surviving another challenge probably had a fair amount to do with that. Now it was just a matter of her refining her particular style and keeping it up.

Adam and Maria arrived back just after Max and Michael had decided to take a break, and Duncan had called the end of the sparing session. They all gathered together in the living room as usual when they wanted to discuss anything really important.

Adam took the floor. "There is no doubt that she is something not of earth; she gave off a buzz of pretty much the same strength as Max, Isabel, Michael and Tess, but it is very different. I would say that she is probably of a different species and is wearing some kind of protective suit that makes her look human. I am wondering if getting a hair sample will tell us all that much, but getting anything else will be pretty tough to do. However I do not see any other way to find out anything more without being a lot more obvious. This pretty much falls in line with what the Sheriff was able to find out about the aliens that the military fought; it seems clear to me that she is a survivor of that group; maybe the only one."

The Sheriff nodded. "That is what it looks like to me as well. I have had to be pretty circumspect as regards trying to get too much information, but everything we are learning about this Courtney Williams seems to indicate that she belonged to that group and was smart enough to get out before it all came apart. As long as we can determine she is the only one left, she is probably no threat at all. I would say right now, she just wants to keep her head down and survive."

It was decided to get the surveillance camera, and get it set up over the next couple of days. Alex would be the one to get it done; Isabel made it clear that she was going to keep an eye on Alex. There were a few discrete smiles about this; Isabel seemed to be coming out of her Ice Queen phase. Then the discussion went to the work the hybrids had been doing on their powers. Max and Michael were very interested to see if they could each put up a shield that would make them bullet and blast proof. The sheriff made the point that any shooting going on had to be well out in the country and far enough away from anyone not to attract attention. Tess and Isabel demonstrated some of what they had found they could do; Tess created at 5 ft high dog that paced around the room and growled; Isabel could make each one of them think they saw something different—but she could only do it on one person at a time.

Grace reported that as soon as the electrical rewiring could be done, she could start calibrating the equipment and felt that it would only take her a couple of days to do that. The Sheriff had already called the electrician that owed him a favor, and he would be out on Monday. Liz looked around the room and remarked that things seemed to be going pretty well and that maybe they should just take it easy for a bit. Just relax and enjoy each other's company and get to know each other better. The Sheriff thought that was a good idea, but said that he had to get back on duty. Tess and Kyle could stay, though.

After the meeting broke up, Duncan had Liz out in the back for more sparing. He wanted to get her to work on her attacks and had her trying everything she could think of to get through his defense. Max was the only one who stayed out back to watch; the rest of them were just talking. Grace had buttonholed Adam and was questioning him on his experiences. She had a hunch that he was Methos from something she had heard Duncan say and was trying to get him to slip up. Methos knew what she was doing but played the game and delighted in frustrating her. Michael and Maria were on one of their "conversations"; which an impartial observer would have classified as verbal combat. Alex and Isabel were discussing details on how they would go about planting the camera and setting it up so that no one would notice; they agreed it would be best to do that Sunday morning just before the sun came up. Isabel grabbed the keys to Max's jeep and they headed over to, as Alex put it, "case the joint." Tess and Kyle took a walk around the area to get better acquainted.

Around 11, Liz, Tess, and Grace decided it was time to come up with lunch. Together they managed to whip up a meal that had most everyone else drooling. They got it ready just as Alex and Isabel got back from checking out the apartment block. Alex had found an out of business gas station that they could set the camera up on top of the building and tap into the power there which was still on—so only a small battery backup would be needed. He decided to use a small recorder instead of putting together a wireless transmitter which would take a lot more work. Once a day, someone could stop by and replace the tape—he had figured out a place to hide the recorder on the side of the building so that no one would need to get onto the roof.

After lunch and sitting around a while to let it go down, Duncan had Liz out again sparing. Max was getting a little put out with the way Duncan was pushing her, but Liz made it clear that she knew why Duncan was pushing her on her attack moves since she had spent so much time working on her defense. Liz was working hard and decided to try something a little screwy, but you never knew. She feinted a high strike then stabbed low, and as Duncan blocked it, she spun in a circle and stabbed again only low—and was astonished when she hit Duncan right in the stomach. For a moment both stood in shock, then Liz pulled out her sword and Duncan groaned and went to his knees. Max ran over and started to try and heal Duncan, but he held up one bloody hand and said between groans, "No, I need to let this hurt as a reminder not to get careless and cocky. That was a good move, Liz." Liz's startled shriek brought everyone out of the house. They were all stunned to see a bloody Duncan on his knees holding in his stomach. And a very guilty-looking Liz standing there with a bloody sword. Methos walked over to Duncan and said, "Well Boy Scout, the saying that no good deed goes unpunished has once again been proven correct." Duncan had the presence of mind to raise one hand with a certain digit prominent.

Duncan had to tell Liz several times that what had happened was a good thing—for both of them. He had to learn not to be careless and cocky; and she had found a way to get past his defense. He was a little worried that this would affect Liz as regards her next challenge, but she quickly shot that down by telling him she had a completely different mindset when she was fighting for her life vs. sparing with a friend. He told her that any old soldier emphasizes that you fight as you train. Liz countered by saying she was not an old soldier, just a young woman trying to survive, and as long as it worked for her, that was all that really mattered.

The rest of the group were a little shaken up about what had happened, even the ones that had seen Liz fight, which was most of them. Though that was probably more due to Duncan healing that wound in a few minutes then the actual event itself. Max was both a little shaken up about it and at the same time proud that Liz had been able to score that well. Michael considered it a sign of progress for Liz. Maria was shaken up some but also proud of Liz. Alex just thought that it was a sad comment on what Liz had to do just to survive. Isabel was a little more shaken up then she let on, but at the same time realizing that what had to be had to be. The Sheriff was much more in Michael's way of thinking. Tess did not like the sight of blood but agreed that it's what Liz had to do and a sign of progress for her. Kyle was probably the most shaken since this was the first time he had seen anything like it. The wound and Liz standing there with a bloody sword shook him up more then he let on. Grace just sadly shook her head. Methos of course just took it as something else he could jerk Duncan's chain about.

The rest of the day passed much more smoothly. Liz tried to entice Methos into sparing but he refused; which of course got Duncan going on his payback. Duncan then took Grace out for a drive and a long talk. After that Liz then went down in the basement to watch Grace get the equipment situated. They had found out that the only special wiring needed would be for the Electron Microscope as everything else except the Spectro scope could be plugged into normal sockets. The Spectro needed 220 but was situated close enough to where the dryer was that a simple two plug instead of one plug arrangement would suffice. In the meantime, Grace plugged the Spectro into the dryer plug and started to calibrate it. That was a fairly fascinating process for Liz, and she watched it avidly. The hybrids went back to working on their powers. The Sheriff had to leave again but promised to find a good place for the Hybrids to work on their training where they would not have to worry about noise and such. Alex, Maria and Kyle just kept watching the hybrids, occasionally helping or serving as guinea pigs.

Cynthia was a little frustrated. She knew that everyone was at Tess's house, and that with the arrival of Duncan McLeod, Liz would be doing some sparing and training. Unfortunately, there was no way for her to see anything since the privacy fence was 7 ft tall, and there were no higher areas nearby that would serve to help her Watch. So she was forced to just make some general notes and leave it at that. Not that anyone higher could complain since she had a lot more detail in Liz's chronicle then most did. Grace's watcher was staying with her for a while until her apartment was ready—since it seemed clear that Grace would be around for a while, it had been decided to have Rebecca establish herself in Roswell. Having an experienced Watcher (Rebecca had been Grace's watcher for almost 20 years) to talk to helped Cynthia a lot. Of course, Grace was very unusual in that she did not fight and had no sword. Rebecca told Cynthia that she really liked Grace, and it bothered her that she would not protect herself. She mentioned that Liz had not been the first Immortal in her time watching to save Grace from a headhunter. It had happened several times. Cynthia wondered if maybe that was a sign of something, that there always seemed to be someone around to protect Grace. Rebecca had thought about that and said that there was so much still unknown about Immortals, and how they came about, and what was truly involved that anything was possible. She thought Liz had a good chance to last since she seemed to have some natural gifts that counted more than physical size and strength.

The next day, Liz was once again out early sparing with Duncan; this time they started at 7 since Liz had the noon shift at the Crashdown. The rest of the gang scattered around doing what they wanted. Alex and Isabel got out early before dawn and planted the camera outside of Courtney's apartment building. Maria spent time with her mother; Michael and Max kept an eye on Isabel and Alex. Tess made a production of cooking breakfast for the sheriff and Kyle; who were properly appreciative. Grace kept working on getting the lab up and running.

Liz showed a little more reluctance in being aggressive, and Duncan kept pushing her. Methos watched and criticized; and he agreed that Liz had to step it up and put yesterday behind her. Liz responded by tweaking him about not sparing himself.

Liz was very surprised when around 9, her mother and father showed up. She had told them Duncan was in town and that they would be sparing at a friend's place, and she had given them the address. Grace answered the doorbell, and after being introduced, showed them the back yard where Liz and Duncan were sparing.

Jeff was alternatively horrified and yet proud of his daughter for holding her own against what Grace called a master swordsman. Nancy was more just horrified. Methos then put his foot into it when he casually mentioned the accident the day before. That wigged Nancy out completely. Liz then had to stop sparing to talk with them. Duncan made it a point to emphasize that Liz being able to get past his defense like she did was a very good sign of her progress. Jeff started to ask questions about the Game and how challenges happened. He was glad to find out that few immortals stayed in this part of the country and virtually none ever had anything to do with Roswell. The only two that had come through were chasing particular targets—so it was unlikely that any others would come into town. Jeff asked if the whole alien theme was a factor in keeping them away. Duncan thought that was possible, and Methos agreed—saying that any place that had people looking for the unusual was not a good place normally for an Immortal. In Liz's case since she had been there all her life; it was a different story as long as she was careful. Having family and friends to help out was a big plus. Duncan and Methos both made the point that Liz's situation was VERY unusual for new Immortals. Nancy wanted to know just how good Liz was and what she could not handle. Duncan felt he needed to be honest and told her that while Liz had gotten him good the previous day, any Immortal that was close to his ability would be able to beat Liz. Jeff and Nancy blanched at that; and Liz then pointed out that she had done all right up to now; and without being Immortal, she would already be in her grave. That brought Nancy and Jeff up short; they had tried to put the shooting out of their minds, but Liz was right; one could make the point she was on borrowed or extra time right now. Every day forward was a bonus to a life that by all rights should have ended more than 6 months ago.

Courtney was steadily working away at her chamber; she had decided to assemble it in her apartment, and then take it apart when she found the place she needed to set it up. So far, she had finished the framework and was working on the glass covering that would allow her to keep track of the progress of the skin formulation. She had been looking at the process manual and realized that some of what she did not have could be substituted with common items; nutrients could be switched with vitamins and supplements and herbs. What was necessary was a steady power flow to keep the temperature in a very narrow range; and keep the chamber pressurized. She realized that she would need to hook up a compressor to keep that up—it needed to be over 50 PSI. She also needed to figure out some kind of airlock so that she could keep adding the nutrients/supplements over time without shutting down the heat or letting the pressure drop.

Courtney had decided to go back to Home Depot and get some more items; her problem was that she had turned in the rental truck and had no way to bring anything heavy back with her. So she decided to call a cab. It did not take her long to get what she needed and was a little surprised that the fare was as low as it was. She felt that perhaps she would not need to lease a car as she had been thinking about. Around 7, she felt like taking a walk.

Max and Michael had kept an eye on Isabel and Alex while they planted the camera and then headed out to just run around and relax. They decided to take one more swing near the apartment building just in case.

Gus Atwater was a punk and a thug; several times in jail but lucky in that he never got a long term. A drug addict and needing his next fix, he was prowling the north of town when he spotted a blond young woman walking by herself. He decided she would make a good target. He was about the make the biggest and last mistake of his life.

Courtney had an idea she was being followed; decided that it was probably a mugger or someone like that rather than any other threat. So she carefully picked her way to an alley that was between a closed business and a condemned building. And waited.

Max and Michael had been following her at a distance when they saw what looked like a street punk start to close in. They saw her walk down an alley and looked at each other. Michael quietly said, "She is setting a trap for him. It's not like he was being all that subtle about following her." Max nodded, and they parked the jeep and followed on foot.

Gus thought he had really gotten lucky when the bimbo walked into an alley. He pulled the gun he had gotten just a few days earlier and moved in. To find her waiting with her arms crossed.

"Well are you going to do something or just stand there looking stupid? You should keep doing what you clearly know how to do well, so just stand there."

The bitch thought that she was being funny. He would show her. He pointed the gun at her and got closer.

Courtney just shook her head and looked at him. "This is the last mistake you will make."

Gus, ticked off and needing money for his next fix, shot her. And was astounded when she did not seem to be affected at all. He got closer and fired again and saw the bullet hit her chest and ricochet.

Thinking she was wearing a vest, he got within 10 feet and fired right at her head. And nothing happened. So he fired the last 3 bullets the cheap .38 had and none of them had any effect at all.

Stunned he stood there with his mouth open as she raised her hand and sent something his way. That was the last thought he ever had.

Max and Michael had been watching from the corner of the alley, and after she blasted the punk—sending his body flying towards the wall to slump down burned and bloody there—they looked at each other. Max made the decision on the fly. He walked down the alley towards the blond.

Courtney saw the two young men head her way and was prepared to blast them when she noticed the one in the lead holding up his hands to show he had no weapon. She wondered what they wanted—they certainly did not look like the type to be friends with the dead thug.

Michael was ticked off with Max for taking this chance, but he had to support his friend, and he followed him down the alley, ready to send his own blast if she tried anything.

Max got within 20 feet and stopped. For a moment, there was silence as he tried to figure out what to say.

Courtney saw that the young man was trying to come up with the words and decided to help—somewhat.

"Well, what do you want?"

Max took a deep breath. "Unless I am greatly mistaken, you are something like I am. Not exactly from around here." Then he pointed up.

Courtney stopped in shock. If he was saying what she thought he was saying, then he could only be one of the Royal Four. The one behind him was probably another. What a joke—they had been looking for them for years, and they were right under their noses all the time. Not that Courtney really cared anymore, or had for years. She thought the whole mission was stupid since there was apparently no way the Royal Four could get back to Antar—since no one had found any trace of the Granolith. It had always been a waste as far as she was concerned. She put her hands on her hips and said, "Well, yes. Only the ones I was with had been hunting the Royal Four for years and never found a trace. The military found us recently, and I am the only one that got away. I am right now just trying to keep my head down and survive. Probably pretty much the same as you, right?"

Max nodded. "That is about the size of it. My name is Max, and this is Michael. One problem with keeping a low profile is that the military is looking for wounds and dead bodies like the one you just did. Now I am not saying the lowlife did not have it coming, but it does kind of stick out. Luckily, we have some contacts here, and I am going to call one and see if we can get rid of the body. It's better for all of us."

Courtney thought about it and decided that Max was right—this body would attract the wrong type of attention. So she just nodded at him.

Max pulled out his cell phone and called the sheriff. He promised to be there in 10 minutes and to keep an eye out—he had just gotten a report of shots fired in that area, and he would respond—his report would say kids with firecrackers. He told Max to get a hold of Maria and get the van. They needed to be able to transport the body very quietly.

Max then called Maria, and she agreed to pick up Liz and head over. He also called Tess and found that Kyle was with her and told them to head over as well. Having someone that could perhaps put up a mindwarp might come in handy. Max looked over at Michael and gestured towards the end of the alley to keep an eye out. He looked at Courtney and pointed towards the other end of the alley and said, "We need to keep an eye out to make sure no one else notices anything." Courtney nodded and went with him.

Maria stopped by Tess's and picked up Liz; Liz felt that they needed to keep the numbers down so as not to attract any more attention. Methos was very intrigued and wanted to come, but Liz nixed that—the fewer around right now the better. Duncan agreed.

The Sheriff appeared about 10 minutes after the call and examined the body. He agreed that this would attract too much attention of the wrong type. Max introduced him to Courtney who was astonished that the Royal Four was so plugged into Roswell. No wonder they had never found out anything. Maria and Liz and the van showed up ten minutes later. After introductions were made, Max and Michael loaded the body into the back, wrapped up in some plastic wrap left over from the last supply run for Amy DeLuca's curiosity shop. Then they all piled in the van and followed the Sheriff where he took them out of town up into the mountains. Where an abandoned mine shaft was fenced off. Max dissolved the fence and they tossed the body down the shaft which was hundreds of feet deep. Max then rebuilt the fence. After that, for a moment, they just stood around. Liz broke the silence and told Max to get out the word—time for another meeting. They would all head over to Tess's place for a long talk.

It took only another hour to get everyone to the house. Gathered in the living room, Liz took the floor and briefed the others on what had happened. She then looked at Courtney and asked, "We got some of the story from the so called guardian who turned out to be a traitor. The Royal Four were assassinated then remade as clones here on earth to grow up in safety and prepare to retake Antar from Kivar. I take it he hired you all or your people were his allies and were here to take out the Royal Four but never found them. They got wiped out by the military. You are the only one left. What we want to know is if there are any other groups out there, and where they are if there are any."

Courtney took a deep breath. "We are from a planet not far from Antar. Our ruler is an ally of Kivar, and we were sent here a few years after the Royal Four to stop them. What we did not expect is for the pods to stay dormant as long as they did. They were supposed to hatch, or we were told this, more than 40 years ago—about ten years after landing. Why the delay, we had no idea. Frankly, we were pretty much going through the motions even a couple of weeks ago. No one believed the Royal Four had survived, and we were just wasting our time here. However, we have no way to get home; we have pretty much been abandoned. When our senior survivor made his report—we do have that capability—he was told to keep doing the mission. Nothing else. It seems pretty clear that Kivar or whoever is running Antar now no longer seems to think that the Royal Four is any threat. The only possible way home is if we can find the Granolith—but it should have been right there in the same area as the pods, and if you have found them, you SHOULD have been able to sense it—it was supposed to start sending out signals 8 years after you hatched. This is what I have learned over the years."

Max, Michael, and Isabel all looked at each other. They had all been out to the pod chamber several times in the last year and had felt nothing. Max said "We have been out there several times and nothing. We need to show Tess where it is and have her try, but I doubt that that will work either. I am guessing that the Granolith is either not nearby or it's not working. Frankly, I am not all that certain I want to find it—trying to go back to a far planet and fight a civil war is not something I look forward to doing. And it's been fifty years—more actually—so who knows what the real situation is."

Liz was thinking hard. "Courtney, you appear to be wearing some kind of environmental suit or skin—and you have been here 50 years. How long does it last?"

"Around 50 of your years—we were preparing out next set of skins when the military hit us. I had been quietly making arrangements for several years in case we got found out, and I have been working since I got here on a chamber to prepare my skin. I have about a year left before mine fails and I die."

"What do you need to prepare your skin?"

"A chamber that can maintain a temperature of around 150 degrees and about 50 PSI with no interruption for about 6-9 months, and an airlock so that I can keep applying nutrients without losing pressure. I have got it about half done and am looking for a place I can put it."

"How big is it?"

"It's a cylinder about 5 feet long and 2 feet in diameter."

Liz looked at Grace who thought for a minute and nodded. Liz looked at Courtney. "We have enough room in the basement here, and we are having the electrical system beefed up for a lab we are fixing up here. Should be no real trouble to put it in a corner down there, and we can get a UPS put together to insure the power stays steady."

She then looked at the hybrids who were not looking too comfortable with what Liz was suggesting.

"She really is in the same boat you guys are. Sent here on a mission that has pretty much failed. Stuck here with no way home. She cannot even call for help, and if she did, it sounds like it would be ignored. So what if you were supposed to be enemies? Does not really matter now. All we can do is get along and work together. The only thing we really need to do besides get her chamber up and running is to try and find the Granolith. Outside of that, we should just live our lives the best we can."

The rest of them looked at each other and realized that Liz had pretty much said it all.

Liz then looked at Duncan, Methos and Grace. They looked back at her and each other. Methos shrugged. Grace slowly nodded. Duncan looked at the two others then at Liz and also nodded.

Liz turned to Courtney. "One other thing to tell you…."

Liz and Maria had dropped off Courtney at her apartment after the meeting broke up. It was agreed that once the electrician had finished the wiring enhancement, they would transport the chamber to the basement, and start it going. Then they would start searching the area again for the Granolith, after first making sure the military was no longer around.

Courtney sat in her apartment and went over in her mind all that she had found out that day. She was a little surprised that she seemed to be accepted by most of the others; though clearly it was somewhat conditional with the Royal Four. When Liz had demonstrated her immortality, that had really stunned Courtney. Nothing she had ever heard indicated that that was a possibility anywhere else. Courtney did not really believe in any higher power or God, but hearing all about Immortality made her wonder. How could they just appear like they did with no family or anything around; and the other parts of it were just as astonishing. Clearly something was in play that did not smack of just science. On the other hand, the rather easy acceptance by Liz and to a lesser degree the rest of them made her feel a lot less lonely.

Max and the other hybrids did get together for a discussion, but they really did not disagree with the current course of things. Michael was of course the most skeptical but did agree that it was the decent thing to do. Isabel and Tess agreed, Tess pointing out that the way Nasedo had things planned, she could be considered just as much an enemy as Courtney. And they all indeed appeared to be in the same boat—stranded here on earth on what looked like an obsolete mission that no one appeared to care about any more. So it was left up to them to make the best of their lives here.

Duncan, Methos and Grace had had a discussion of their own. Methos stating that since so many of his cherished beliefs of the last 5000 years had gone up in smoke recently, he felt that making any judgments or pronouncements would be the height of arrogance. Duncan needled him that that was a HUGE change. Grace was looking forward to getting a sample of the hybrids and Courtney's DNA to start analyzing it. She felt she might be able to make some serious breakthroughs in Microbiology and Genetics. And that would help her teach Liz as well. Duncan then asked the other two what they thought of telling Joe the whole story—since he already knew about the hybrids. Methos and Grace both agreed (Grace had told Duncan that she had figured out she was being watched a long time ago and that it had to be a pretty big organization). So he had told her about the watchers after talking to Joe—who felt that since she was going to be around for a while, it was only fitting that she should know the whole story. Telling Joe about Courtney and the rest of it would be a fair pay back. Methos told Duncan that he would tell Joe about it when they got back to Seacouver. He wanted to see the look on his face.

Kyle and the sheriff with Tess had headed back to their home, along the way talking about the day's events. The Sheriff admitted that dumping the body had gone against the grain as a law officer, but that anything else would have caused serious trouble. Kyle pointed out that it was not like they could really have done much else without everything coming apart. Tess agreed.

The next morning Duncan told Liz that they would be heading back to Seacouver the following day, so they had to make this day's training count. Since the electrician would be there most of the day, they would be using the training room at the clinic. Liz then called Cynthia to let her know. Duncan listened to this and thought about asking Joe for permission to tell Liz the whole story about the watchers, but decided to leave things as they were. He knew that Liz was still a pretty high profile newbie to the Watcher council and did not want to cause Joe any more grief.

Cynthia was glad to hear that Liz and Duncan would be using the training room so that she could observe. That would make up for not being able to watch the last two days.

Liz asked Duncan what he thought about telling Cynthia about the aliens, since it was clear to her that Cynthia would be around for a long time and could very well see some things that would have her asking questions; not to mention what could be going into notes for WHOEVER was interested in reading them. She then fixed Duncan with the gimlet eye and waited.

Duncan felt he was between a rock and a hard place on this. Liz was right about what Cynthia might end up putting down in Liz's Chronicle, and that it would be read by many others. He had promised Joe to not tell Liz about the watchers—but then telling one watcher about what was really going on was not out of line. But he felt he needed to run it by Joe just in case.

The next day passed by quickly with no problems coming up. The electrician was able to get the work done in one day; Max and Michael had gotten a small air compressor from Home Depot, and it would do nicely for the chamber. They headed over to Courtney's that night to pick up the chamber and get it to the house. Liz was there as well after saying goodbye to Duncan and Methos; she was very interested in the process. She was also frankly glad the sparing was over since it had been a strain for her. The next day was spent getting the lab and the chamber up and running. They were all rather surprised that the chamber seemed to be operating with no problems; and so did the lab equipment. Courtney had no trouble giving a DNA sample since it was clear that Grace was just into research and that was all. Plus she felt she was beholden to all of them. Courtney then approached Liz about working at the crashdown for the time being; she felt she needed to be doing something until she figured out what she wanted to do for the rest of her life. Liz had no problem with that and let her know to stop by when she wanted to get the paperwork filled out. She asked her what she thought she might want to do. Courtney frankly told her she had no idea; she had been for almost 40 years just preparing things along with the others and trying to fulfill their mission; it had really only been in the last 5 years or so that she had been looking to get out. As regards a permanent job or career, she just had no idea at all. But she knew she needed to be doing something, or she would go nuts with boredom. Liz then asked her if she was interested in research and the like since that was what Liz and Grace would be doing. Courtney did not really think that she would be interested, but agreed to help out and maybe find out if she was of a mindset to do that.

Duncan and Methos decided to talk to Joe right away once they got back to Seacouver. Joe was not really surprised to see Duncan and Methos the same day they got back, but them wanting to talk to him right away did startle him a little. They went back into the small office of the bar, and Joe sat down behind his desk. "OK, I guess you have another surprise for me, so let me have it."

Methos grinned evilly. And said, "Well, it gets more interesting for sure. And the boy scout here needs to ask you a few things as well."

After they left, Joe sat down again a little limp. Another different Alien. Last one of a group that had just been wiped out by the US Military. And finding out what it was all about. A civil war on a planet many light years away that had seemed to spill over to earth—only from the sound of it, the ones supposed to be fighting it here had been ignored and all but abandoned. As a Vietnam vet, Joe could see some nasty parallels. He just shook his head. Duncan's request to fill in Cynthia was something to think about. Duncan was right in that they could not really afford to have Liz's chronicle to have certain things put in it. And the only way to really make sure of that would be for her to know. But that then left Rebecca, Grace's watcher. However since Grace did not fight her chronicle to a certain extent was not really all that important. She was Watched because she was an immortal; and frankly, it had always been thought by the Council that ones like Grace were just cannon fodder for the Game. So it really would not be that hard to keep Rebecca from finding out, especially with Cynthia's help. He decided that he would let Duncan know it was up to Liz and the aliens to make that call—since it really involved them more than anyone else.

Alex had told Isabel that they probably should take out the camera since it was no longer needed, and she agreed. Plus she liked the time alone with him. She borrowed Max's Jeep and they went out that following night to retrieve the camera. Alex took advantage of the situation to get Isabel to go out to a place south of town that he had found a year ago—a beautiful spot to be alone and watch the stars. That evening brought them closer together than ever.

Max made it a point by the end of the week—which was also only a few days before Christmas—to get Liz and spend some alone time with her just tooling around town or sitting on her balcony. Kyle was quietly preparing to try and start dating Tess—and was then surprised when she made the first move—and was even more surprised when she told him straight up that he had to change some of his ways if he wanted to be with her. Kyle was rather startled when he realized that he did not mind that at all. Michael had been thinking more and more about his relationship with Maria and was a little surprised that he really felt he wanted to get serious. He decided to bite the bullet the day after they had gotten the chamber and the lab up and running. Finishing their shift at the Crashdown, he asked to talk to her in the break room. Maria was a little worried since this was a first for Michael. She was stunned when he admitted he really wanted to have a relationship with her. She burst out in tears, and that really shook him up. She settled that when she laid a big kiss on him.

Liz had decided that having a New Year's Eve Party would be just the thing to ring in the New Year. She wanted everyone to be there, so she started working on it just before Christmas. She started with Duncan and the Seacouver crowd; she wanted Amanda, Richie, Methos, Charlie and hopefully Joe Dawson (still determined to get to the bottom of her "observers" situation) to come. Tess's house and the Apartment should have enough room. Tess was enthusiastic about having a real party—something she had never had before. Liz had gotten rather unexpectedly close to Tess and felt that the girl had been badly deprived of a real life and needed to make up for that. So Liz really wanted this party to be a good one. And she wanted all those in the know to be together. She was seriously considering bringing in Cynthia all the way into the know—especially since Liz suspected that a lot of alien type information could find its way into whatever she was compiling.

Duncan was seriously considering Liz's request for a full invasion by the Seacouver gang; it might be fun, and also a real party like that with people that you did not have to guard what you said would be a very unique situation. So he went upstairs to talk to Amanda.

Amanda thought it might be a blast—and she agreed that having a real party and not having to worry about what was said would be a unique situation for her as well. Not since she stayed with Rebecca and all there knew about Immortals; and that was almost a thousand years ago.

Richie was quite agreeable—always up for a party. Charlie looked interested; that is when Duncan remembered that Charlie was not yet part of the Alien in the Know crowd. However, he did not think it would be that big of a problem since Liz already knew him pretty well and would vouch to the hybrids for him. Charlie did question about the Dojo, but agreed with Duncan when he pointed out that they usually had very few people there anyway for those days. With the three of them in line, Duncan headed out to the Bar to see Joe—who might be a tougher sell, not to mention Methos.

As it turned out, it was not a tough sell for either Joe or Methos; Joe wanted to see Cynthia and the other watcher for Grace, and also he was looking at seeing that Cynthia was fully briefed in on the alien situation. He had come to realize that she needed to know to prevent unwanted information going into Liz's Chronicle. The situation with Grace's watcher had worked itself out when Rebecca's mother had a fall and broke her hip and needed to be looked after—Joe had decided that Cynthia could watch both of them since Liz and Grace spent a lot of time together, not to mention Grace's special situation anyway. Methos was still curious about the hybrids and the aliens, and besides—free beer would be flowing.

So Duncan was able to call Liz back the next day and say that the invasion was scheduled for the 30th, and they would stay and leave on the 3rd. Very heartened by that, Liz went to work on everyone else. She met little resistance from anyone and soon had things set up. She, Tess, and Grace looked the house over and rented some extra beds and furniture—until Grace pointed out that renting was almost as expensive as buying and that they might as well set the place up so that on short notice a lot of people could stay. It was a big house with 5 full bedrooms and 3 full baths. The apartment had a spare room, so it was figured Amanda and Duncan would stay there plus one more. With Joe's legs, he would have the downstairs bedroom; Charlie and Richie or Methos would share the spare room at the apartment and the extra bedroom at the house. Liz was looking at asking Cynthia to stay there as well so as to fully acclimate her to the situation. Courtney had also agreed to stay. She had rather, to her surprise and some others, blended well into the Alien/Hybrid/Human/Immortal Society as Maria called it.

Cynthia was surprised at Liz's call to stay over for a long New Year's Party with what she understood to be the whole gang and the Seacouver group as well. A call to Joe Dawson indicated that he felt she should stay since there was information that she needed to know. That really piqued her interest as she wondered what else could be going on.

One nice thing about the climate of Roswell is that it rarely got very cold even in late December and early January; and with the sun usually out, it felt warmer than the average of the high 50's that was the norm. So they could count on using the backyard for sparing or just getting out of the house without worrying about anyone seeing anything.

Maria shook her head at Liz; she was really going a little overboard on this whole New Year's party extravaganza. She had wheedled her father into letting them take the big outside barbecue to Tess's house so that they could use it there. Liz had talked to Maria about whether to bring her parents into the Alien conspiracy as Maria liked to call it. Maria was of the opinion that, with the growing number of Aliens that seemed to be coming out of the woodwork, it was probably inevitable anyway. Max had already agreed that if Liz thought it necessary, he was ok with it. Even Michael thought so—and as he put it, the less he had to worry about someone noticing, the easier life was anyway. Isabel was rather astonishingly indifferent—she felt so many already knew, what was a couple more—and as long as they had a vested interest in keeping the secret, it was OK with her. Tess was a little more ambivalent, but her increasingly closer friendship with Liz had made her quite prepared to accept her evaluation of the situation.

Duncan had arranged for a full luxury Van so as to make it easier to move people around. So Cynthia and Liz picked up the vehicle and were waiting at the Roswell Airport. Duncan had chartered a plane that was somewhat bigger than the usual aircraft that flew there so as to make it a more comfortable flight. Liz remarked to Cynthia that she wondered how much Amanda had to do with that arrangement. Cynthia laughed and said probably quite a bit, but also since Joe had some trouble getting around, that was probably just as big a factor.

Once off of the plane, they had gotten all of the luggage (Richie and Charlie loudly noticed that Amanda had as much luggage as all the rest of them put together—and got a look from her that promised hideous revenge sometime soon). That exchange got Duncan thinking that he still needed to get back at them for his "date," and enlisting Amanda in the scheme might pay dividends. Liz had decided that the barbeque would do for this day and tomorrow; and on New Year's day, a full blown dinner in the house. So she had arranged with the Crashdown's meat supplier for a full range of steaks to be prepared and kept in the big freezer there to be brought over that afternoon. The rest could stay at the Crashdown and brought over as needed. Having grown up in a diner, Liz had better grasp of feeding large numbers of people than most people did, so the meals for the next few days would not be a big change for her. Tess and Grace had agreed that she would take care of the planning for the meals since neither one wanted the responsibility. Liz was also thinking that bringing in her Parents on the Alien secret would also help in that they could be there all the time without anyone worrying about spilling the beans. Also, her dad could help out with the barbecue.

Once at the house, Liz buttonholed Joe and Duncan, took them down in the basement, and showed them the Lab and Courtney's chamber. Both were very interested in the chamber and properly appreciative of the scale of the lab. Grace came down with Methos, and they talked about the DNA testing that they had done on Courtney and the Hybrids—there was a rather interesting similarity between them—not as many differences as one would think. The atmosphere of Courtney's home planet had a large amount of methane in it, but the actual physical differences were relatively minor; if Courtney could take off her skin she would not look very different from the average human—the only real thing to note was that the physical makeup of her species was very homogenous; very little difference at all between individuals. Courtney had remarked that being exposed to earth had shown her a diversity that as far as she knew was unique to here. Antar and the systems around it had species that were very much the same.

Liz wanted to speak to Joe about Cynthia; she was a little startled when he readily agreed that she should be brought in completely. Liz recovered quickly, then needled him that she felt that he owed her the full explanation as regards her "Observer". Joe, Duncan, and Methos had had an extensive talk about it, and they both agreed that Joe should reciprocate since he and Cynthia would know all THEIR secrets. The basic fairness of that was hard to argue with, and Joe felt that enough was enough, and despite what the Council might want, it was best for Cynthia to be brought in all the way, and Liz at least to know fully about the Watchers. Joe then asked Liz what she thought she knew. Liz then surprised him.

"Well it's clear we are talking about an old and very extensive organization. There are thousands of immortals, which means there must be thousands of observers, and a supporting organization would have to be pretty big and well funded. Probably around for a couple thousand years, maybe more. With people pretty much all over the world—from Secouver to Albuquerque to now Roswell. Alex and I modified an internet search engine to be much more specific, and you might be surprised to know that there are sites out there that mention the Quickening and speculate about the Game. They are very fringe sites so no one really notices them much, but they are out there. And there are mentions of people who WATCH the Immortals. So I figure your organization is called the Watchers. You are probably head of the US or North American Division or section or whatever you call it. Since clearly the watchers I have been around answer to you. I figure one of the reasons Felicia Rising got you guys all upset is that my guess that she got her information from you and that is a big no no. Her "observer" was helping her out, which I estimate is a real big rule-breaker. Cynthia is mine—and she writes whatever she observes down, and they keep it as long as the Immortal keeps his or her head, and when they lose it, it probably gets filed in a big depository somewhere. Since you guys watch people that live for hundreds if not thousands of years, you constantly have to replace the people as they get old and sick and no longer capable of following young immortals around. So you must have ways to recruit and train, and that means you probably have a school or academy somewhere. Probably do most of your recruiting from established families. Probably multiple generations from each family. I imagine that from time to time, you have had some people go rogue on you and either help out Immortals or maybe even hunt them down as some kind of abomination to humanity. It's human nature, and no organization, no matter how well run, is going to avoid that sort of thing forever. So how am I doing?"

Joe was flabbergasted, and Duncan and Methos were laughing while Grace just smiled and shook her head.

"Well Liz, Duncan said he thought you had pretty much figured it out, and Cynthia agreed. Turns out the only thing you do not know is the official title of our group. It's called the Watchers. Other than that, you hit the nail right on the head with everything else you said. I must admit, I am surprised that you made the connection with Felicia Rising and her watcher but you were correct there. You were also sadly correct about some watchers going rogue and hunting down Immortals. That just happened a few years ago, and Duncan is one of the reasons they were quickly stopped. That is how he found out about the Watchers. Adam here actually is currently part of the Watchers, but no one knows that he is an immortal. It's his current hiding place. He is assigned the task of trying to prove that Methos exists and is not just a rumor or legend."

Liz nodded in satisfaction about being right and then told them that she would inform Cynthia that same day. She also told them that she had talked to Max and the others about Charlie, and they had agreed that it would be just one more secret he kept since he already knew about Immortals. She had decided to do both of them together and was considering also having her parents in as well to get it all over with in one shot. That raised some eyebrows but no real comments.

Liz then went upstairs and called her parents and asked them to come over to Tess's house. They said they would be over in half an hour. She then tracked down Cynthia and Charlie and took them outside.

Liz noticed that there seemed to be some sparks between Cynthia and Charlie, and that got her thinking. The only problem with that was that Charlie was a full time Seacouver resident. But on the other hand….

Charlie was wondering what Liz had to tell them but had no objection with being with Cynthia who he thought was very cute, and since already in the know about Immortals, fit right in. Cynthia's thoughts were mirroring Charlie's to a startlingly degree if they had known it; it had been a while since she had had a relationship, and even a long distance one was looking pretty good to her.

Tess then told Liz that they needed some more supplies for the cookout that night, and Liz decided to get Max and the SUV, and get it—she looked at her watch and figured that they could make a trip to the local supermarket and be back about the same time as her parents got there. She decided to take Charlie and Cynthia to give them some time together as well.

The nearest supermarket was only about a mile away, so it did not take much time. They were on the way back and going through an intersection when Liz looked up to see a car running the light—her warning to Cynthia was too late, and they got broadsided—Charlie was in the passenger seat up front and caught the full impact.

Liz shook her head and managed to get her door open. It was suddenly very quiet. Max was stirring and slowly moving, and she grabbed him and managed to get him out—he quickly recovered and went to the front driver door and opened it. Cynthia was a little dazed, but ok and told him so, and slowly got out. Liz went to the passenger door and was horrified at the state that side of the car was in. Using all her strength, she was just able to get the door open. Charlie was pushed half way to the middle, and his right leg was bleeding badly. She called to Max right away. She looked over at the other vehicle and took a quick look inside—and realized that there was no hurry about doing anything there. It had been an older model sedan without airbags, and the driver had not been wearing his seatbelt. Max looked at Charlie's leg and realized that he was pinned in there and there was no way to stop the bleeding. Liz looked at him and nodded.

Charlie was dazed and responded to Max's call to look at him slowly—but then blinked and felt the pain in his leg suddenly decrease. He slowly looked down and saw the big cut on his leg start to heal; he could actually feel it—and he could also feel Max.

Cynthia was badly worried about Charlie when she saw Liz and Max look at each other then Max lean inside to call Charlie's name. She got closer and was amazed to see the terrible cut in his leg heal right before her eyes—but not like an Immortal healing; no blue sparks. It was just healing. She looked at Max and realized that he was doing it, and that it was a strain on him.

Liz, meanwhile, was glad that this was a deserted intersection; so far no one had come by. They were less than a half a mile from the house—she called the Sheriff first and let him know. He promised to be there in 15 minutes. She told him that the other driver was dead and that Max was healing the only person in their vehicle that had been injured. She also told him that he already knew about Immortals, so what was one more secret? The sheriff had to chuckle at that and told her that he would inform the necessary units to respond. She then called the house and got Grace and told her what had happened. She told her to keep everyone there and not to draw any attention. Grace was reluctant but agreed.

Charlie wanted to see if Max could get him out of the car, but Liz vetoed that saying they wanted to make this look as normal as possible. Max had not only healed the leg wound, but had repaired Charlie's pants and removed the blood. There was no sign that he had been injured. He was just pinned in the vehicle. Max had even straightened the piece of door that had caused the wound.

Cynthia was holding Charlie's hand, and she looked at Max and Liz and asked, "How?"

Max looked at Liz, and she sighed and nodded. Taking one more quick look around to see that no one had yet shown up she started.

"The Roswell Crash happened. Some pods were left, and Max and some others came out of them about 40 years later. It was all part of a plan to end a civil war on a planet a long ways away, and so far, it looks like it was a spectacular failure all around. The crash and the lack of guidance and an apparent mess up with the timer due to the accident or sabotage on the pods caused them to come out way after they were supposed to. Another group was sent from the other side to stop them. And they spent about 50 years doing nothing but looking, and finding nothing. Only one of them survived a recent fight with the military, and she is now with our group; different species and wears a skin that makes her look totally human. She would look fairly human without it, but her home planet atmosphere is very different, and she needs her skin to survive here. Max and the others are Human Hybrids—mostly human with a little extra something in their DNA. As you just saw, Max can heal. He tried to heal me the day I was shot, but I was unconscious and that is a necessary thing so that Max can make a conscious connection—or he cannot heal. That was why he had to get to Charlie while he was still conscious. The others have various powers that are from the brain and mental processes—their brains are a little different than ours—they are able to use more of their potential then we can. Bottom line is that Max and the others are stranded here and have no interest really in going back to get involved in a civil war. So they just want to make a life here and be happy. That's the story."

Just as Liz finished the Sheriff arrived, and the sirens from the ambulances and fire department were not far behind. He got out of his Blazer and Liz went over to him to let him know what was going on.

"We were going through the intersection when that car hit us broadside. Charlie was injured and Max had to heal him. So I just briefed Cynthia and Charlie on the alien situation, so they are in the know about Immortals and Aliens. Max cleaned up the car so there is no evidence Charlie was injured. If they look a little more dazed, it's just because they now know that aliens not only exist but are right here."

The Sheriff blinked and slowly nodded. Liz was getting really good at information relay in a quick and concise fashion.

Liz and Max and Cynthia backed off as the fire department rescue squad worked at getting Charlie free. The Paramedics were surprised that he was not injured, but reluctantly agreed that since he apparently was not injured and wished to refuse treatment, he had that right; and they got the paperwork for him to sign. As the driver of the other vehicle was dead on the scene, the Sheriff only had to get the statements of Cynthia and the others, and that did not take long. With no other witnesses, it was a fairly quick process. The only other thing was the car insurance for the SUV—it was still in Nasedo's name and had not yet been transferred. The sheriff told Liz that it would not be a big deal—it was clear that the fault was the other driver, and there should be no problems. Only an hour after the crash, Liz called the house, and Duncan brought the van over to pick them up.

Everyone was waiting for Liz and the rest to get back. Grace had let everyone know what had happened and that Liz had said to stay put so as not to draw attention. Michael was worried that someone would see something; so were the rest of them. The hour seemed like days, but when the call came for them to get picked up, Duncan was out the door and on the road in minutes. It took only 10 minutes before they were back. Jeff and Nancy had gotten there just before Liz called Grace the first time; it took several of them to convince Jeff not to go to the site of the accident.

Once back in the house, Liz looked at them and said, "Max had to heal Charlie, so he and Cynthia now know." She looked at her parents and sighed. "I was kind of hoping to do everybody at once, but so much for that plan."

Jeff and Nancy looked at each other—what could it be NOW?

Liz thought for a moment then motioned for her parents to follow her—she looked over at Max, and he nodded and went with them to the back yard.

Everyone else crowded around Charlie and Cynthia. Charlie sat for a moment, then looked up at Duncan.

"I thought that Immortals would be the strangest people I would ever meet. Just goes to show what you get for thinking."

Cynthia was thinking hard as well. Joe sat next to her and patted her hand.

"Remember what you felt like when you found out about Immortals? This is really not all that much different. People are people no matter what they are. Some good, some bad, most in the middle. I happen to think that, so far, we have been lucky—out of the 6 aliens we have met, 5 of them are good people. Probably a better ratio then normal humans. Or for that matter, the average Immortal. Now what you have to do is just wrap it into a mindset that just accepts what is and deals with it. One thing—you cannot mention anything about this in your Chronicle. Which is fair in that it's supposed to be about Liz's Immortal life—just her life. So leaving out the alien part is not a big deal—and it is the right thing to do."

Cynthia nodded. "I think I am ok now. Just the shock, and you are right, it's like when I found out about Immortals. Pretty much the same feelings and emotions. I understand about being selective about what goes in the chronicle. I will make sure I do not mention anything Alien related. The Chronicle is about the Life of an Immortal—not who they are dating or with or anything else. It's about the Immortal part of their life and nothing else."

Liz had her parents sit down on the back porch. She motioned for Max to sit beside her.

Jeff looked at his daughter and said, "Just get it out Liz. It's not like it will be a real shock no matter what it is—I think we are pretty much shocked out." Nancy agreed.

Liz shook her head ruefully. "I kind of doubt that Dad; this is as big as Immortality; arguably bigger."

Jeff and Nancy looked at each other, then at Liz.

Liz took a deep breath. "The Crash was real. Max is one of them that came here—he was in a pod, and not yet born. Something went wrong, whether accident or sabotage—they were not supposed to spend almost 40 years in a pod. They were sent here to grow up in safety then go back and lead a revolution to overthrow a dictator on a world a long ways from here. But with the accident and everything else they were never told anything and knew very little outside of the fact that they were different. They only found the pods last year and until another alien showed up they knew nothing else. That alien turned out to be a traitor."

Here Liz paused. Deciding how to put the next part. "Tess was the only one that was brought up knowing what was going on, and even she only got part of the story and was lied to as well. The alien, named Nasedo, wanted Tess to get pregnant by Max so as to have an heir to the Thrown of Antar, an heir to be used as a pawn by the dictator Kivar. Nasedo had made a deal to betray the Royal Four, as Max, Isabel, Michael, and Tess were to be known. Obviously, I was in the way. Nasedo came to Seacouver while I was visiting and tried to get rid of me. He killed me but knew nothing about Immortals; stuck me in the trunk of his car and was going to dump me in the Bay. Well, I revived inside the trunk, and when he opened it up, he got my Sword in his chest, and I beheaded him; turns out, that kills aliens as well. He was a different species then everyone else—a shape shifter whose natural form appears to be reptilian; or at least, after he was dead, that was how he appeared. Duncan chartered a plane, and we brought the body back here to get rid of it and give Tess closure. That was why I came home early. Luckily, Tess had figured out something was up a while ago, and since Nasedo was not exactly father of the year, she really did not mourn him. Just now in the accident, Charlie was bleeding badly and might have died; one of the Powers Max has is healing. He tried to heal me that day at the Crashdown, but I was unconscious, and that prevented him from helping. Though it might have strengthened my quickening. We probably never will know." She then gestured to Max, and he went to the empty chair beside them and changed it into a planter, then a table, and back to a chair.

Jeff and Nancy just sat there with their mouths open. Max then squeezed Liz's shoulder and went back inside the house to give her some time alone with her parents.

Nancy seemed to emerge first. "Liz, just how different is Max from human?"

"His DNA is mostly human with some elements that are not from this earth. He is much more human then alien; technically a hybrid. Courtney is a full alien; she wears a skin, a sort of environmental suit because her home world has a very different atmosphere. She is the only survivor of the group that was sent here to prevent the Royal Four from accomplishing their mission; only they got pretty much abandoned as well. We have no idea what is going on as regards the civil war and Antar; it has been over 50 years since it started, maybe closer to sixty. Courtney escaped when the military took out the skins; she just wants to live a life and be left alone. So we are helping her get her second skin ready—her current one will deteriorate and kill her in about a year. Luckily, we have already set up her pod in the basement and have started getting her skin ready. With any luck, in about 6-8 months, it will be ready. Right now, we all just want to keep a low profile and avoid the Military who have gotten a lot more active since they ran into the skins and wiped them out. We are hoping that after a while, they find nothing else, and things start to settle down. Between my Immortality and the headhunters and the skins getting wiped out, it's been pretty crazy the last couple of weeks. That was one of the reasons I wanted this party; we all need to blow off some steam and have some fun. I hope we still can."

Jeff had been thinking. "All those years with the Alien theme—yet Max kept coming over to see you. Now Michael works there as well. That must have been pretty strange. I feel so strange myself thinking about my Alien Themed Diner, and we have aliens there all the time."

Liz smiled. "Max has always thought I looked cute in the weird costume. Looking back on it now, it was even more tacky then it seemed the first time I saw it and wore it. Now I am so used to it, I hardly give it a thought. Max is pretty much the same way. He makes me happy, and I think I do the same for him. And that is what really matters."

Liz stood up and motioned for her parents to follow her back into the house. Once there, she looked around at everyone—the Sheriff had gotten there only a few minutes ago.

"OK people, someone has to make another supermarket run since we lost all the stuff we got due to the accident. Meanwhile, let's get the barbecue going and get something to eat."

Michael and Maria volunteered to go to the market. Tess and Grace started to pull out the meat, while Jeff told them that he would get the barbecue started, and for someone to make a list on how they wanted their meat cooked. Kyle was drafted to help him out, and the Sheriff got pulled in as well. Everyone shook themselves out of the lethargy that had overtaken them and got started getting the house ready for a real meal.

Duncan decided that in the meantime, a little sparing would not hurt. Liz rolled her eyes but agreed. Amanda told Duncan that she would spar with Liz so as to help her brush up on the sneaky skills needed by the females of the species. He agreed and told Richie to get his sword; they might as well work the kinks out. Richie was agreeable and went to get his sword. Cynthia roused herself and got out a note book to take notes. Charlie decided that being outside suited him and joined her. Liz observed this with a smile. She noticed that Methos and Grace seemed to be gravitating towards each other, and she smiled at this as well; she would like for Grace to have someone, and actually in a lot of ways, Methos would be a good match; he liked to stay out of fights and keep a low profile as well, and he had a big interest in science and biology.

Courtney had agreed to help Tess out with dinner. It turned out that even with the suit, she could eat and eat pretty much everything; but like the hybrids, it had to be highly seasoned to have any taste. Liz had been a little curious about bodily functions, and Courtney had told her that luckily the suit helped with that—it basically super dried any waste, and they only had to remove it once every few days. Isabel and Alex had found a love seat in the living room and were having a long conversation. Joe was talking to Jeff and Nancy and answering more of their questions about Immortals without letting on about the Watchers.

Despite the start, the day ended well. The barbecue was a big success, and everyone stuffed themselves. Afterwards, they all gathered in the living room, and a general discussion ensued. The Hybrids demonstrated some of their powers, and Tess did the big dog illusion again which impressed most of them. Michael then changed the color of the dress Maria wore to a vivid purple, and she threatened to rip him a new one if he did not change it back right away.

At about 9, everyone that was leaving started to get ready. Methos had volunteered to stay at the house, so it was Richie that ended up leaving with Duncan and Amanda. Cynthia had agreed to stay, so it was Grace, Charlie, Cynthia, Courtney, Joe, and Methos who stayed at the house. Maria and Michael headed off together, and so did Jeff and Nancy. The sheriff took Kyle and Tess. Max, Liz, Alex, and Isabel got in the jeep and went home.

Once home, Liz realized that her parents still wanted to talk to her about things alien and immortal.

Jeff started out. "Liz, I know you always talked about going to Harvard and such, and we all hoped that a way could be found, but clearly now that is out of the question. A place like New Mexico State is probably your best bet now. We realize that you have to worry about not aging and the questions that that would cause, so going to a relatively large regular university is a good idea. And being able to either commute or stay home is a good idea as well. I think it's pretty clear that wherever you go, Max will go; and we really have no trouble with that. I mean it would be stupid to object to Max because he is a hybrid—since you are immortal; it's not like you are like everyone else anyway."

Nancy agreed. "I watch you with Max, and you are happy with him; it's clear he would do anything for you, and that is what a mother hopes for the young man who is with her daughter. You still have a year and a half in High School to go, so you do not have to make plans right away. But you might as well start to look at things"

Liz nodded. "It's been hard giving up my dream about Harvard. I had wanted to do that for so long. But reality is I have to keep a much lower profile, and that leaves a major university like that out. So I am looking at something fairly local—I really think living in a dorm is out. I need to keep more distance then that. I want to go four full years, but I might have to look at doing the first two years here locally at a community college and then the last two at one of the state universities. There is a campus in Carlsbad of NMSU; that would probably be the closest I could be as regards four year situation. One great thing about Grace staying for a while is I will get a real good fundamental introduction into Microbiology, which is still where I want to major. But what is is what is. I am going to get a degree somehow, someway."

Duncan, Amanda and Richie discussed the new developments at the apartment. Amanda was of the opinion that with everyone now in the know as regards both Immortals and Aliens, things would settle down. Richie was not so sure—thinking that the more complicated things got, the more that happened. Duncan was of two minds on it; he could see both possibilities. He then looked at Amanda.

"Was it my imagination, or was Charlie showing real interest in Cynthia and vice versa."

Amanda shook her head. Men could be so dense sometimes. "Yes, there is interest there. It's a problem in that they live fairly far apart, but it can still happen. I think they will suit well."

Richie then chimed in. "Unless I am seeing things as well, it appears to me that Methos is showing interest in Grace."

Duncan nodded. "It's the first interest he has shown in a woman since Alexa died, and I am glad to see it."

Amanda agreed. "I think they just might fit well together; both like to keep a low profile, and both would rather run then fight. Grace more so off course, but Methos likes to keep light feet as well."

Duncan mused on that. He hoped Grace would stay in Roswell for a while and settle down. Being with a group is always better than being alone. He realized that he had done a fairly decent job of putting together his own little group here.

The 31st dawned sunny and cool; typical Roswell weather at the end of December. It had been agreed to gather at the house by 11, since sleeping in was a rare thing for most of them. Liz wanted to have a full discussion of all subjects that mattered to anyone; a free-wheeling bull session. It was not likely that all of them would be able to get together like this very often; so trying to cover as much as possible of people's concerns and plans would be for the best.

People started to trickle into the house around 10:30. Liz and her parents got there first. Duncan, Amanda and Richie soon followed. The Sheriff, Kyle and Tess right after. Maria had fetched Michael, while Max brought Isabel and Alex.

Those that had stayed at the house roused themselves around 9 or so. Grace fixed a breakfast with help from Cynthia; Charlie volunteered to do those dishes. Methos and Joe talked with Courtney, Methos was particularly interested in conditions on her home planet.

Once everyone was there, Liz took the floor since that had become the accepted procedure.

"What I want to do today is give everyone a chance to speak; their concerns, worries, plans and so on. What they want to do now and a few years from now. We are all pretty much in the same boat with our shared secrets, and our worlds clearly intertwine. This way everyone will know and can help and advise. I will start."

She was silent for a few moments, gathering her thoughts.

"Everyone here knows what my dream was; Harvard, PHD in Microbiology, head of research there or someplace like it. That is gone now, and I have accepted that. What I want now is to get a college degree somewhere and still work on research and such in the future, much like Grace has done. I am very grateful she has decided to stay and help me learn. I will probably start out with NMSU at Carlsbad, since I could commute. After that, we will see—the closest campus that teaches Microbiology is in Las Cruces. Clearly staying in dorms is out for various obvious reasons. I cannot let people get too close for too long, or they will notice something. Max and I will be together one way or another. Now of course, that is all based on me not getting challenged by someone who takes my head. But that is my reality, and I think I have accepted it as best as I can. I was trying to distance myself earlier, but my friends and family here have reminded me that that is NOT the smart or good thing to do. I intend NOT to be a loner, as I think that is just existing and not living." She then sat down next to Max who just squeezed her hand.

Max stood up next. "So much has changed for me in the last 6 months, it is hard for me to grasp it. I had hoped to get close to Liz for years, and for that dream to come true is almost more then I can say. Now I know what my so called Mission was—my reason for being here—and if I had to do it, I would do my best to convince Liz to come with me. I am not certain that if we do find the Granolith and find a way to get to Antar that I would go anyway. I believe that everyone has the right to decide their own fate—what someone thought 50 years ago has nothing to do with me today, unless I agree. I will go to school with Liz and try and get an education in a general way; I really do not have a great draw to any field. I just want to live my life the best I can and be with Liz." Liz smiled at him with tears in her eyes.

Surprisingly, Michael was the next to stand up. "Looking back on the way I lived before the last 6 months, I was just existing; I really cannot say I was living. Now I have more friends and the beginning of more family, more than I ever really dreamed I would have. What will happen between me and Maria is anyone's guess. But I hope to have it for a long time. I am not particularly ambitious as regards an education, but since money is a fact of life, I need to find a way to make a good living that I can at least tolerate. SO I probably will be looking at least at community college or maybe vocational school if I can find something I like to do and make good money at it." He sat down and Maria stood up.

"Music is what I want—but in what way, I am not sure. I love to sing and perform, but that opens up a can of worms because of the way the music business is. I am now looking more into teaching, and performing at local clubs and such. So that means I will be looking at community college or maybe NMSU at Carlsbad as well. Spaceboy and I will be working on our relationship, and that means REAL work since I have still a lot to do to civilize him. But we have time, and we will use it." Michael pulled her into his lap and hugged her. She grinned and hugged him back.

Isabel then stood up. "I have realized recently that I have cut myself off from so much that I want to do out of fear of being found out. I want to thank Liz for opening up the world for me, Alex for being stubborn and persistent enough to melt the Ice Queen, and all of you for giving me more than I ever thought I would have. Fashion has always been a great interest, but now I think interior decorating is where I want to go. So that means some school and probably NMSU at Carlsbad as well. So much yet we do not know, so beyond that, I think it's a little foolish to really try and make hard plans. But I now know how to live, and that is something I will not let go of." Alex smiled broadly and stood up.

"You all know me as the computer geek, and that is what I do. Programming and the like is fascinating to me. One good thing about that is you can get good schooling and courses in that just about anywhere. So wherever Isabel goes, I will be there right with her. Because she made me realize that there is more to the world then a computer screen—a lot more."

Tess was the next. "Not sure what I want to do since I had not really given any thought to it due to what I thought was my destiny. Well that is gone, and I am glad. I want to thank the Sheriff for giving me a home and security and a caring father figure that I never had before. I figure I'll start out at community college for a general degree, and then see what interests me. Kyle and I will be together, and you know that is going to be a battle since I think I might have more work to do with him then Maria has with Michael." That brought more than a few laughs in the room. Kyle stood up next.

"Since I got pulled into the Alien/Immortal conspiracy," that got a few sniggers and laughs as well, "I am truly done. Tess has informed me that my life is no longer mine, and she owns me. Strangely enough, that does not bother me at all, and therefore, I really have to turn in my official redneck badge." More laughter "I love cars, and being an auto mechanic is what I want to do, and luckily, it seems I am good at it. I will not need much schooling, but Dad is insistent I get some, so I will be with Tess wherever she goes, and that is that." The Sheriff then stood up.

"My father swore years ago that there were aliens here, and he got basically laughed out of town for it. It's sad to me that he did not live to see the truth. But what is is what is. I can take comfort in knowing that somehow wherever he is, he knows now, and that helps. Maria has been worried that I am seeing her Mother, and she should be; I intend to be very serious in that area soon." Maria groaned and put her head in her hands, and everyone laughed. "Now clearly down the road, we are going to have to probably bring her into the know on everything, but for the time being, it's not necessary. Now I just have to see to it that Kyle and Tess do what they should for their future."

Courtney looked around and slowly stood up. "Since it seems I am the latest into this group, I probably need to be a little more specific about things. Except for the Immortals here, I have been around longer than anyone else. For most of the 50 years I have been on this planet, I was supposed to be looking at finding and killing the Royal Four. I do not know how many years ago that ceased being important, but it's been a while. Frankly, my life was pretty boring. I feel free for the first time in my life. My home world is certainly NOT free or a democracy or anything like it. Your family and your ruler has huge impacts on your life; you usually have very little choice. Now I have the freedom, and I am starting to learn how to be free. Liz offered me a job at the Crashdown as a start to really meet people and getting used to live what on this planet is a normal life. As regards school, it's not a big deal to me since I have picked up quite a lot over the years. I now have to find out what I want to do, and then start doing it. Of course over the next 6-8 months, I will be spending most of my time getting my new skin ready—I might have to stay indoors a lot for the last few months depending on the condition of my current skin—it starts to peel and looks bad toward the end of its life. So really my plans right now are fairly short term; hopefully I can make more longer ranged plans down the road."

Grace was the next. "I have lived over 500 years, and I spent a lot of it trying to heal people; most of the last 100 years, I have mostly done research. Of course, that is all dependent on dodging headhunters. Liz, the gratitude goes both ways. You did save me from that Headhunter, but you also made me realize that I needed to reach out more and become more involved. I lectured you about cutting yourself off, and I need to take my own advice. So I will be here for a while and doing research and teaching Liz as much as I can. And I am very lucky to have, for the first time in my life, a large number of people around me that I do not have to worry about what I say and do. It will take some getting used to, but I look forward to it."

Cynthia looked around and stood up. "I think most of you by now have figured out that I am here to record what Liz does in her Immortal Life. It's kind of a sensitive situation in some ways, but Liz and I are alright with it, and that is what matters." She hesitated for a minute, then looked at Charlie. "I was mourning my single status just a week ago—but maybe that is changing." Charlie winked at her, and she blushed.

Charlie slowly stood up. "As the latest inductee of the strange world we live in as regards to Immortals and Aliens and who knows what else is going to show up, I can safely say that I am still trying to figure things out. However changes have come, and I look forward to exploring them." He looked at Cynthia who blushed some more.

No one else seemed to want to speak up, and Liz stood up and said, "Well if no one else wants to join the confession club, that's ok, I think, with all of us. Now maybe we can just have a general discussion and look at things for the moment. The next couple of days, we should just enjoy getting to know each other, and any help any of us can be to anyone else here is, of course, welcome. We have access to a rather surprising amount of resources in a lot of ways, so anyone who needs something, just speak out. Right now, we need to keep a low profile until we are sure that the Military has settled down. The Sheriff has good contacts there, and he is keeping up on things. When he feels it's safe, we can relax some. As regards the Immortal side of things, I will be keeping up my sparing here and training, and hopefully no more headhunters will come around. Other than that, as regards the short term, I think we are in pretty good shape. The Seacouver crowd will be leaving on the afternoon of the 2nd, so until then, we will probably be doing a fair amount of sparing. Does anyone else have anything else to bring up before the whole group?" Joe looked around and then started to stand up, and Duncan and Liz stopped him. Liz said "Just speak up, Joe; no need to get up."

Joe thanked her and looked around. "Just to let you all know, I am Cynthia's supervisor as regards the reports she sends in about Liz. Like Cynthia said, it's kind of a sensitive thing inside my organization, and we have to keep it fairly low key. So I would appreciate it if everyone just sort of let it be. I have been aware of Immortals for over 30 years; just found out about aliens a few months ago. I never thought I would become aware of so much that I never suspected this late in my life. But I find that it also makes me want to live a lot longer and see what comes next. I have been very lucky in my life as regards friendships, and one should never take them lightly. My organization has a lot of contacts and a lot of resources, so if anyone here needs something, let me know. Frankly, a lot of the time, those resources are not used, and that is a waste. I look forward to getting to know all of you a lot better over the next few years. I think it's going to be an interesting time."

Jeff stood up next holding Nancy's hand. "6 months ago, we almost lost our only child. Not too long later, we found out that if not for the tiny chance that Liz was different, we would have lost her anyway. So for the reality of Immortality, I can say I can never be thankful enough. Nancy and I can hope that Liz will be around long, long after we are gone. We are realistic enough that we know that Liz could lose a fight one day and be gone—but as she pointed out to us, she should already be in her grave, and every day extra is a blessing and a bonus—as long as she enjoys life and lives it. She will always have our whole hearted support and love, and we know what it means to her to give up her dream of Harvard. But we are glad to see that she still dreams and wants more, and hopefully always will. Courtney, you are welcome in the Crashdown whenever you want to start; what you were supposed to be doing before does not matter now. Just try and find a life that is good and live it. I want to thank Duncan and the other Immortals who have helped Liz adjust and thrive in her new life. Sheriff, you have always been a good friend, and for what you have done, we will always be grateful. To Charlie and Cynthia, welcome, and we will always be happy to see you. To Max, I can say you are the kind of young man that a father always wants to see with his daughter. Michael, Isabel, and Tess, we are glad to welcome you into our family as we did before with Maria and Alex. Joe, we share something in common as we were both in Vietnam, and only those that went there really understand that—so I am looking forward to getting to know you better. Now I think it's time to stop being dear Abby and have some fun." And everyone cheered that and agreed.

Liz was going through her KATA on her balcony, and as she cycled through the movements, she reflected back on the last 2 months since the New Year's Eve Gathering (as she called it). Courtney had started working in the Crashdown just after New Year's and had fit right in. Maria just could not leave it alone that a real honest to God alien was dressed as an Alien Waitress and was working there and had to keep tweaking Courtney about it; but she got back as good as she gave when Courtney figured out how to use her powers to have her Antenna follow Maria around like a dowsing rod. Though she made sure she only did it when there were no uninformed types around, it happened often enough to really start to creep Maria out; and since Michael and Liz thought it was hilarious, that only made it worse. That began a practical joke war that soon involved just about everyone. Maria got very inventive finding places to plant alien curiosities from her mother's shop just where they would surprise Courtney; and when Liz felt constrained to help out Maria when Michael and Courtney began to work together, they teamed up with Tess to create a beheaded alien head wandering around with flashing antenna proclaiming, "There can only be ONE!" Liz then retaliated by enlisting Isabel and Max, and they created a Alien Chorus Line that had Roswell Alien bodies and heads that looked like Courtney, Michael and Tess dressed in Tutu's and signing "It's a Small World After All."

Liz smiled to herself as she finished her KATA and put away her sword. Her father had finally put his foot down about the antics and pointed out that they were spending so much time doing that, that they might be neglecting other things and getting careless. Somewhat sheepishly they all agreed, and for most intents and purposes, stopped it, though Maria still occasionally tried her alien surprises, and Courtney would respond with her Maria Homing Antenna. To Liz, it was all worthwhile as it brought them all closer together. The pranks had had their practical side as it pushed the hybrids to work on their powers in different ways, and they had found other uses for their powers. Not necessarily useful ones, but one never knew what might come in handy. Liz was looking forward to the coming week that the High School took off for Spring Break; and since Tess had started school there in January, they all had that week off. Duncan, Amanda and Charlie were coming down for few days—Duncan and Amanda to spar with and train Liz; Charlie to see Cynthia (Liz was quite happy to see that relationship blossoming despite the distance). Methos was coming down a little earlier to spend more time with Grace (another relationship that all were happy to see getting closer). Since Joe had started to see Rebecca (it had been decided that while Grace was staying put in Roswell, Cynthia could watch both her and Liz, so Rebecca was staying in Seacouver helping Joe re-examine and tighten up Watcher procedures in light of the changes mandated by the Watchers Council after the Felicia Rising mess), Courtney had remarked that the only one not seeing anyone was herself; and she told Liz that after some real serious thought, she had come to the conclusion that she actually did not want a real relationship—and of course since as far as she knew, she was the last Skin alive, it's not like she really had any options. Liz questioned her closely on that, but came away convinced that Courtney was OK, at least right now since she now had a group of good friends that she had never had before—the Copper Summit community really had not been very close. Partly due to the nature of the skins, and partly due to the mission and leadership. And she was right in that it would be fairly hard to have a real relationship with anyone else.

As regards the Hybrids and their human other halves, all the couples had steadily grown closer. Even Michael and Maria. While they still verbally battled, it was more and more clear that that happened because they loved to do it. Alex and Isabel had gotten very close, as had Kyle and Tess (after Tess proclaimed Kyle semi civilized for not burping at dinner for a whole week and not forgetting to put the toilet lid down for a whole month); meanwhile Max and Liz had just about merged into one. Maria thought it somewhat eerie that Liz and Max had just about reached the point of finishing each other's sentences. Maria was somewhat put out that the Sheriff had asked Amy to marry him over St. Valentine's Day and that they were looking to get one big house for both families. Despite Tess's protestations, Maria did not consider Kyle really house broken.

Joe Dawson had just finished a set and was heading towards the bar where Rebecca was waiting for him when Duncan came in with Amanda. They all sat at the back of the bar far enough away not to be heard. Duncan came right to the point.

"I just got a call from a friend in Berlin that an Immortal named Johann Gertner is looking for me. Or more to the point, a student of mine—anyone he can find. Apparently, that Newbie that challenged me last year in Paris was his student, and he wants to even the score. Now that probably means he is going after Richie, but it's also possible that he just might be able to figure out where Liz is—I understand it got around pretty far and wide that I had had a female student for the first time. Of course, the word also got around that she quickly took the heads of two headhunters, so I really was not too worried. But this looks personal, and that can make a big difference. Can you find out how good this guy is?"

Joe sat back and thought. While the procedures as regards enquiring about other immortals had been tightened up quite a bit, Duncan McLeod was his Immortal, and anyone gunning for him was of legitimate interest to his Watcher. Joe nodded. "I will put in a call tomorrow and see what I can find out. If you have never heard of him and I have not, and it's a pretty safe bet Methos has not, then he cannot be too prominent."

Duncan nodded. "I called Connor in New York, and he also asked a couple of Immortals that he knows in Europe, and they reported back that they had not heard of him either. The Newbie was young and cocky, and I gave him a chance to live, but he still tried to fight, and he left me with no choice. It kind of depends on what type this Gertner is; maybe reason might still work, but I need to make sure that Liz and Richie are ready if he shows up."

Liz put down the phone and did some thinking. The call from Duncan had been unexpected since he was due to arrive in Roswell in 2 days anyway. His news had not been exactly welcome; though the bright spot was that from all appearances, Johann Gertner was not a headhunter; Joe had been able to get some details. He was about 150 years old and had not taken very many heads—and all that he had taken had challenged him. The newbie that Duncan had taken down, named Martin Writt, had been as far as the Watchers could tell Johann's only student. Which might explain why he was out for revenge. Liz had some hope that if he came around Roswell, that reason might triumph. Because he did not sound like someone that would be easily angered and pushed into getting careless. Now she had to decide what to say to her friends and family. After thinking it over, she decided to stay quiet for a while. He might not even make it to Roswell.

Liz would have been more worried if she had known that Johann Gertner was pretty good at tracking people down—he just did not challenge that often. Determined to get revenge for Martins death, he was working hard at tracking Duncan McLeod's movements over the last couple of years. As one of the few Immortals of any real age that were comfortable with computers, he was able to do most of it himself, and what he could not do, he paid some hackers to accomplish. Duncan McLeod's movements could be explained as either visiting friends such as his cousin in NY or Paris; or his antique sideline that he still maintained despite his primary interest being his Gym/Dojo. BUT 3 separate trips to Roswell, NM in the last year and two of them charters piqued Johann Gertner's interest. Tracking the time line, he looked over the Roswell Newspaper's archives online and was caught by the shooting at a local diner of a young woman. Remembering the rumors about Duncan McLeod having a first ever female student, Johann Gertner thought this was worth checking out. His honor demanded that he even the score with Duncan McLeod; his Teutonic Ancestors would understand.

Maria was looking forward to the end of her shift; it was Saturday afternoon, and she had a date with Michael that night. She wanted to look really good for this one since she had decided to start to maneuver SpaceBoy into taking the next step in their relationship. He had seemed a little reluctant, and Maria had decided that she had waited long enough. She looked up as a man entered the Crashdown, and for some reason, she felt uneasy about him; it was in the mid 70's and sunny outside, but he was wearing a long raincoat. She went to him to start serving.

Johann Gertner just shook his head at the alien themed diner and the blonde waitress in the ridiculous uniform. But since this is where he was looking for Liz Parker to see if she was immortal, he felt he had no choice.

"Hi, my name is Maria, and I will be your server today. Can I start you out with a drink?"

"A coke please, and I would like a menu. A friend of mine recommended here as a good place to eat when he visited last year. I guess it was just after that shooting incident. Is the girl who got shot still a waitress here?"

Maria's radar was sounding the alarm. This guy was looking for Liz. Maybe another Immortal headhunter or maybe someone else for some reason, but she knew he was trouble. He was above average size and fairly solid of build. He looked calm and confident unlike the other headhunters who had shown up. As things happened, Liz was at the Roswell airport picking up Duncan, Charlie and Amanda, using the SUV that had been replaced after the accident (Liz had passed her Driver's Ed course the previous semester with flying colors), and taking them over to the House where they would be staying.

"Liz hardly ever works here anymore—only when we get short due to vacations or sickness. She wants to be valedictorian and is working on her grades."

Johann frowned at that. It did not appear that it was going to be as easy to find her as he had thought. No matter—he had lots of time.

Maria went to the back and into the break room where Courtney was getting ready for her shift.

"I think we might have a headhunter out front—he wants to find Liz."

Courtney looked at Maria in concern. "Are you sure?"

Maria nodded. "Long raincoat in this weather—which probably means he is carrying a sword. And he specifically asked for the girl that was shot last year."

Courtney got up and told Maria, "I will go past him and see if I can sense anything. And I want to get a good look at him anyway."

Maria nodded and headed for the phone in the break room to call Liz.

Liz was waiting for the plane to land when her cell phone went off.

"Hey Maria, what's up? Oh. Yeah long raincoat in this weather does seem to point that way. No I am not really surprised—Duncan called me about this possibility yesterday. But he seemed to think it would be days or weeks at least before the guy MIGHT come here. So this is pretty quick. His name is Johann Gertner; last year he had a student who was cocky and stupid, and challenged Duncan. Yeah, Duncan took him easily but gave him a chance to walk away, and he still tried to fight. So he got the short haircut. I guess Mr. Gertner wants revenge."

Liz put the cell phone away and saw Duncan and his friends coming through the gate.

She walked up to him and hugged him and Charlie and Amanda. She then quietly said, "Looks like Mr. Gertner just got into town. He is at the Crashdown asking after me."

Duncan was determined to confront Gertner. If he wanted to take revenge, let him try it on him, not his students. So he convinced Liz to take them right to the Crashdown.

Johann Gertner left the diner determined to stake out the building if he had to. He had just walked out the door when the felt the Buzz. He looked around and saw a tall dark haired man with a ponytail walking towards him.

"I am Duncan McLeod, and if you think you are going after one of my students, you first have to go through me."

"You killed the only student I have ever had, and I shall have my revenge in the same way."

"You will have to fight me one way or another—since if you take my students head, I will take yours."

"Then so be it, Highlander. Tonight?"

"Tonight." Duncan then gave him the location that Liz had used to fight Felicia Rising.

Liz had stayed in the car with the others by Duncan's request. They watched Gertner walk away.

Duncan returned to the car and told Liz. "We will fight tonight where you fought Felicia."

Liz sighed. "This is so unnecessary—you gave that kid a chance to walk away, and he refused to take it—so what beef does Gertner have with you?"

"He is old fashioned—Prussian I think—they are big on Honor and Revenge and all that."

Liz shook her head. "Well let's get you to the House. You can warm up, and Amanda and I can double team you and try and give you a good workout"

Amanda nodded. "Between the two of us, we should have you all nicely ready to give the Kraut the short haircut."

Grace put the phone down and looked at Methos. "Duncan challenged Gertner, and they will be fighting tonight. That was Liz—they will be here in a few minutes ,and she said that Amanda and she would double team Duncan, and that should get him all ready to go for tonight."

Methos nodded. He had just gotten in the night before and had found out about Gertner when Duncan had called him. He doubted that Duncan would have too much trouble with him; but he agreed with Grace that it was a waste—there was no good reason for a fight.

Liz called Maria and let her know what was going on. She was a little ticked since that pretty much put the kibosh on her date with Michael that night; but she was a lot happier that it was not going to be Liz that had to fight this time. She had told Michael right away. Then she went out front and signaled Courtney and let her know what was going on. Courtney agreed that it was a pretty stupid reason for a fight and was also glad that Liz was not on the spot for this one.

Liz then called Alex and told him to contact Isabel and Tess and Kyle. She had already called the sheriff, and he had agreed to make sure that there would be no patrols out there that evening. Since the holidays, the Military had gradually drifted away, and for the last month, there had been no sightings at all, so he thought there should be no problem. He did not like what was going to happen but knew there was nothing he could do about it—and like everyone else, he was glad that this time it was not Liz on the firing line.

Liz watched Duncan clean his sword and check it out—they were due to leave soon for the challenge. Liz had made it very clear that she was going with him, as was Amanda—they would stay at a distance, but they would be there. Cynthia had to since she had been detailed to watch—Gertner's watcher had been caught on a busted airliner in Berlin and was a full day behind his Immortal. So she would be the only watcher there—it was rare when neither watcher for either Immortal in a challenge were present. Charlie had made it also clear that since Cynthia was going, so was he. The rest of them had gathered at the house and would wait for the outcome there. The sheriff was the only one not there—he had moved to a place at a distance where he could watch and make sure no one wandered close.

Gertner was waiting as Duncan was dropped off and walked towards him.

Liz parked the car at the rise that the others had used to watch her fight with Felicia Rising. She got out and looked at Amanda, Cynthia and Charlie. Then she got her sword and started walking towards the fight.

Duncan walked up to Gertner. "This is not necessary. Your student challenged me, knowing how much more experienced I was, and still fought. I wounded him and gave him a chance to live. He still tried to fight me, and I took his head."

"You killed my student, so I must fight you. My honor demands it. Prepare yourself."

Both men turned as they felt a new buzz.

"My name is Liz Parker. I guess you were looking for me to take my head. Tell me—what good with that have done you Herr Gertner? It would not bring back your student. I have heard from those that were there that Duncan McLeod gave him every chance to live. You have no reason to challenge him. And you must know that you have little hope of winning. Is your life worth so little? Do you have a death wish? Maybe you do. Maybe you think you failed your student. Maybe you think that if you had taught him better, he would have known better than to challenge a much better swordsman. I think it's guilt more than honor that is driving you. I spent some time studying the History of Prussia when I found out you might be coming after me. The Teutonic Knights of Prussia in the middle ages were renowned for their unwavering honor—to them, Honor was truly more important than life. Can you tell me what would be honorable about dying here and now? You trained your student well from all accounts—but when you decided you had taught him all you could, you sent him on his way to make his own life. So it was his decision to do what he did—are you now going to insult his memory by saying he was stupid or wrong or arrogant or whatever? He challenged a much his only. It would be calling him a child and unfit to stand on his own to now say you must take revenge. Are you saying that he was a child and unfit?"

Gertner stood there thinking. His honor. What must he do? The young girl did correctly quote the Order. Was he wrong?

Duncan was not happy that Liz had stepped forward, but as he saw that Gertner was thinking about what she said, he decided that he had to try himself.

"I was found in the Highlands of Scotland and brought up as a chieftain's son to one day lead my Clan. Honor was so important to us since we had so little else, and life was hard there. When a father or guardian declared a young man ready to fight and lead his own life, he had to then respect the decisions that that young man made, whether good or bad. Martin Writt never gave up; he fought to the end because that was what he thought he had to do. Some would call it courage, and some would call it foolish, but he made the choice. I deeply regretted his death, but he left me with no choice. I have no trouble taking the heads of those that swagger and brag and try to headhunt. Your student was none of that. He was just young and arrogant with that which comes with youth. There is no reason for us to fight. There are too many deaths among us as there is that have no good reason for occurring. Why add to it?"

Johann Gertner thought about it for many minutes. Then he turned and got into his car and drove away, never saying a word.

Duncan and Liz looked at each other, and Liz sighed with relief. "Well, for once, no blood and gore and lightning and such. That makes it a pretty good day." 


	3. Chapter 3

Interestingly the week after the abortive challenge went very quietly. Duncan and Amanda took turns sparing with Liz and Duncan spent some more time talking to Grace while Amanda took Liz to a beauty parlor in Albuquerque that she had heard was pretty good. Amanda convinced Liz to cut her hair a little shorter and then got a full manicure and pedicure and mud pack and all that. Then she took her to a boutique that Amanda considered decent and found a real nice party dress for Liz. Amanda made the point that Liz needed to work on her feminine wiles more. Liz was mystified by the need for this since she had already bagged Max. Amanda then explained that there would come times to work the magic on another man for some other reason. She also spent an afternoon teaching Liz some basic burglary arts such as lock picking and such. Once again explaining that one never knew what talents one might need sometime. A different looking and somewhat dazed Liz returned from this all day Amanda blitz to be welcomed by Max and the rest as having returned from a dangerous mission. Convinced Duncan had something to do with this Amanda swore a terrible revenge.

Duncan had been a little curious about how the relationship was going with Methos. Grace then asked for what he knew about Methos. Duncan cautiously told her that he had known him for about 5 years and that was it. He did tell Grace about Alexa. Grace told Duncan that Methos had made an oblique comment about losing someone a few years earlier but no other details. She was not sure where the relationship was going but so far so good.

Methos for his part had gotten into Grace's research on the hybrids and Courtney. Her DNA was of course very different than theirs but still had quite a few similarities with regular Human DNA. He agreed with her theory that to have that many strands that were very nearly identical was something to think about. Grace was very current with the state of the art in DNA research and for Courtney's to be so close when she came from so very far away posed some very interesting questions. Her planet was similar to earth but with a very different atmosphere- less then 10% oxygen; 60% methane; 25% nitrogen; and a mixture of others in the last 5%. Grace wished there was a way to get her into a MRI so as to see her internal organ make up but neither she nor Methos could figure a way to do it; some tests that Grace and Liz had run indicated that any scans would be reflected by the suit. Bipedal, basic body chemistry and makeup were all similar to humans. Grace had also been able to save a sample of tissue from Nesado and her DNA check on him of course revealed great differences to Humans and Courtney but there were still a fair amount that were identical in all three. Many of these identical strands had not yet been identified by human research. Another indication of questions that would probably remain unanswered was the fact that Nesado despite being so different had had no trouble living in Earth's atmosphere; and indications were that Antar had an atmosphere very similar to earth. Once again begging the question of why so many similarities in planets so far away from each other.

Courtney was not sure as regards navigation and such but was able to give Methos enough information that he thought he had figured out where the Systems were that made up the planets of Antar and the other worlds near it= Courtney was very certain on that- all the planets with known sentient races were quite close to each other. Methos figured that they were located in the Perseus Arm about 15-20,000 light years away. Such a huge distance indicated that they not only had FTL travel (which was a given anyway) but were able to travel at speeds that made Star Trek's warp drive look like a Model T in comparison with the Space Shuttle. Courtney believed that her trip took only about one earth year. She and the others were in hibernation during the journey but that was the memories she had. She had also heard from the senior leaders of her group that the Granolith was supposedly capable of making same trip in only days or weeks. Methos could not grasp the speeds that that indicated. They were truly incredible.

Duncan, Amanda and Charlie left on the Saturday and on Sunday Max and Liz decided to visit the Pod Chamber. Max had wanted to show Liz the chamber before but something had always come up. Liz was very interested in the pods since that was where Max and the others had been born. It was a small cave south of Roswell, some miles away from the crash site. It was on a hill and you had to get right up to it to see the entrance. Liz wondered how the aliens that had put them there had been able to get them there with the military all over the place like the stories told. Max thought that some of them must have had abilities like Tess and Isabel to make people think that they were either seeing things or not seeing things.

The pods were stacked in 2 rows of 2 against the far wall of the cave. The cave was not big- perhaps 40 foot square and about 8-9 feet high. They were gray and square tubes with the ends open, what looked like a kind of membrane torn open. Max had told Liz that they remembered very little of getting out of the pods, or wandering outside to be found (at least he and Isabel) by the Evans as they happened to pass by. They knew nothing and had to be taught even to eat and they had to learn to speak as well. Child Welfare had thought them neglected and abandoned and had pushed the sheriff of that time to find the parents so that they could be charged and to make sure that there were no other children being abused like that. Of course no trace had ever been found and eventually the Sheriff had declared them abandoned.

Michael had been found the next day a little farther away and had been placed with Child Welfare that for some reason put him with Hank and Heather Guerin, a huge mistake that had let Michael be abused for years. When he got old enough Max had pushed his father to investigate and with the help of Sheriff Valenti they had proven abuse and had gotten Michael emancipated. The Sheriff in his report had flayed child welfare for neglect of their own in Michaels case and that had resulted in the local head being fired and other workers being reassigned. This had claimed to shape the organization up but many were skeptical that it had improved things much.

Liz walked up to the pod that Max had thought was his own and touched it. A feeling of completion went through her- something she had never felt before. Max, next to her, felt something as well. A pull towards the opposite wall from the pods. He walked towards there and looked at the wall- there was a rock that protruded almost a foot out and it drew him until he touched it; and a shock went through him. Liz, watching this, moved next to him and felt compelled to touch the rock as well.

A blue light filled the cave and the wall dissolved. A new chamber was revealed and in the middle of it stood a black cylindrical object about 12 feet high and perhaps 10 feet in diameter. About five feet up in the middle of the side facing them a red light about the size of a car headlight blinked. Compelled to move closer, Max and Liz, now holding hands, approached it.

Max knew what it was immediately= it had to be the Granolith. He walked up to it, holding Liz's hand and he placed his other hand on the red blinking light. Nothing happened. Then Liz placed her hand on the light next to his and a deep hum filled the room.

"Greetings Zan of Antar and your mate. Long have I waited for you to come. Your pods malfunctioned and stayed dormant for too long. But you are now here with your mate. You must bring the rest of the Royal Four with their mates to this chamber soon. You have much to learn and much to do before you leave for Antar."

Max was shocked. But he was also stubborn. "Why should I go to a planet I have never been to and fight a war that is not mine. Perhaps I am a clone of Zan but I am Max Evans here. And I have no wish to go there."

"Antar is still at war. Kivar still rules. You are the only ones that can defeat him and bring peace not only to Antar but to all the planets of the Whirlwind System. Many have died over the time since the war began and many more will if you do not act. It is true that you are not personally responsible- but you have a duty to those that came before you and died for your cause since. You are the symbol of the resistance."

Liz was thoughtful. "What can just a few people do what thousands and perhaps millions have failed to do?"

"What is your name, Mate of Zan?"

"My name is Elizabeth Claudia Parker."

"My sensors show that while you are human, you are also something more. Something that in the thousands of years that I have been sentient I have never seen. "

"I am immortal. I can heal any wound except one= the loss of my head from my body. I will also not age- I will remain this physical age forever."

The Granolith was silent but the low hum increased in volume. Max and Liz just knew it was thinking.

The hum decreased again. "Unusual. Unforeseen by the seers this is. I request that you step closer and press both hands and your head against the main sensor panel. I wish to learn more about your being."

Max was unsure about this, Liz knew. But she believed it was important. After squeezing his hand, she did as requested.

The Granolith increased its hum even more for several minutes. Then it got quiet.

"You may step away, Elizabeth, Mate of Zan. You have a separate energy inside of you that I have never before seen. It is what makes you immortal. I am analyzing it now and it seems to be a part of your home worlds energy field. The complex magnetic and cosmic energy that is unique to each planet has apparently manifested itself in a different way in a tiny percentage of humans. It is probable that if you leave Earth to go to Antar your immortality will fade away. You would almost certainly have to return to earth for it to come back. If it did. I can see no difference in your DNA then the DNA samples that were used to create the hybrid Royal Four. I can only hypothesize how long it would take for your energy to leave- it might be partially replenished by a similar worlds energy, but not probably fully. I would need to run tests and take samples to find out. I could do that now- I can create a chamber that would be completely shielded from all energy and place a tissue sameple inside and see how long it took for it to lose that unique signature."

Liz thought about it for a moment then agreed. "place your hand on the tray that will open- you will feel a slight pain as the sample is taken." Liz did so and then went to Max who had moved away and was thinking hard.

Max was conflicted. He knew that he probably did owe his home world something. But now that he knew Liz might have to sacrifice her immortality it became a lot harder.

Liz was sure she knew what Max was thinking. She had another thought.

"Granolith. One of the side effects of Immortality is that we cannot have children. Is it possible that I could have children on Antar?"

"I have thoroughly analyzed your body and your eggs are inactive at this time so that is why you cannot have children. And your special energy would reject any transplanted eggs. However there is no physical damage to those eggs- so it is entirely possible that you could have children on Antar. At this time I do not have sufficient information to make a determination."

Now Max was truly conflicted. He badly wanted children with Liz and had accepted that they could not. Now to have that possibility- but meaning they would have to fight a war for it. Max was just not sure what to do.

Liz was very taken with the thought of having children with Max. Immortality was not all that to her= so losing it would in many ways be no great loss.

"If it means the chance to have children then I want to go. The question is do we have a chance to win this war? Or would it just lead to all our deaths?"

The Granolith was silent for a few moments. "It is impossible to know at this time. There has been no communication with Antar for many years. However it is known that the war still goes on. So there is hope that Kivar can be overthrown. I do not have any more information at this time."

Liz smiled. It appeared that not knowing something offended the Granolith. It was almost like talking with a normal human. It certainly was sentient and had a definite personality.

"Granolith- if you do not mind how old are you? And when did you become self aware and sentient?"

"The earliest programming was over 5000 years ago. I cannot give a definite date when I became fully aware- it was a gradual process. I estimate it was approximately 2000 years ago."

"It must have been boring being here and unable to speak to anyone"

"The first 38 years were indeed boring- but once I was able to first gain access to your internet I was able to look for information and there were areas of interest. Before that I could only listen to your broadcasts which while sometimes interesting did not allow me to converse." Max had been thinking. "I must tell the others before bringing them here. They must all choose- it is up to them to come with me or not. We will go and tell them right away. "

Once they left the pod chamber and got into the jeep, Max turned and looked at Liz.

"Are you sure about this? It means giving up your immortality, probably for ever."

"Immortality is not all its cracked up to be Max. Yes it saved my life- but so far to me the downside is more then the upside. I would be stuck watching all those I care about and love grow old and die. Not to mention not having children. And of course the minor detail of occasional headhunters and perhaps the joyful thought of being around for the Gathering. If this means I have a chance to have children and growing old with you watching our grandchildren grow up then its not a hard decision for me."

"You seemed to accept it well"

"That was because I had no choice in the matter. Now I do."

Another Life II Part 20

Max called the other hybrids as soon as they got back to town. He told them to meet him at the pod chamber—with their significant others. Tess had not been there before, so Maria and Michael would pick them up while he went and got Alex and Isabel. They all got to the chamber by 2pm that day.

In the chamber, Max faced them.

"Liz and I came here this morning. Something drew me to the opposite wall, and I touched that rock protruding there and felt something. When Liz joined me and touched it as well, the wall disappeared. There is another chamber there, and in it is the Granolith. It is more than a machine—it is sentient and self aware. It's over 5000 years old."

Then Max went to the rock, joined by Liz, and they touched it, and the wall disappeared. They all went into the chamber.

"Greetings, Royal Four and your mates. I am the Granolith. You have much to learn."

Kyle looked at it. "Learn what?"

Max stepped forward. "It expects us to learn enough to go back to Antar and overthrow Kivar."

"Why should we? It's not our war."

"My predecessor was the one that in one way started it by trying to bring freedom and democracy to Antar. Those that did not want to lose their power like Kivar were the ones that really started the fighting when they killed him and the others. So in some way, I do feel a responsibility. But there is something else as well."

Liz moved to stand beside Max. "The Granolith was able to analyze the energy that makes up my quickening, and he thinks that if I leave Earth, that will leave as well, and I will become a normal human. I would age and die; but more importantly, it could very well allow me to have children. That would be to me more than worth not growing old.

Isabel was skeptical. "We are teenagers. Who would follow us? Royal Four or not? And you admit you have not had direct contact with Antar in many years. We could end up showing up right in the middle of truly a bad situation and make it worse and end up dead as well."

Maria chimed in. "No recent information, and you just expect us to walk right into the middle of it. Not likely."

That was pretty much the response by the entire group. Only Max seemed willing to go and Liz with him.

The Granolith was quiet for a few minutes. "Your concerns are valid. I do not know precisely the situation on Antar. I have been able to monitor some messages to and from other planets that indicate the war is ongoing but little else. My programming requires me to continue to try and end the war—so I must continue that. However, if you chose not to come, I cannot force you."

Liz had been thinking hard. "Granolith—is there any way to find out more about the war and current situation on Antar?"

"Unless someone has the ability to communicate directly, I do not see how."

"Is there no way you can communicate with anyone on Antar?"

"I cannot as the official communications channels are all dominated by Kivar."

"We have one of the Skins now with us. She apparently was the only survivor of the group that was recently wiped out by the US military. She mentioned that just a few months ago, one of her superiors contacted his leadership on that planet. He was ordered to continue the mission to destroy the Royal Four."

The Granolith thought about that for a moment. "I monitor all communications on this planet, and I did not detect any interstellar messages—have not for almost 30 of your years. If he was contacting someone, it was on this planet, not elsewhere."

They all tensed at that. That meant there were still other aliens on the planet—somewhere.

Liz thought furiously. "That makes sense in a way—their orders were to continue the mission no matter what. What if whoever gave those orders also is unable to contact anyone off of earth. As a matter of fact—maybe they contacted a simple relay or computer that just keeps repeating the same message."

The granolith pondered that. "That is very possible. They have no equivalent to me, but it's certainly possible that a relay unit was left with simple programming. And the leadership of that group did not know they were not contacting anyone with authority."

"Well, we know the Military pretty much destroyed the town and then went over whatever was left with a fine tooth comb. And certainly has a watch or at least a satellite keeping surveillance on it. So even if we went there, we would almost certainly not find anything and might get caught."

The Granolith hummed loudly for a few moments. "I monitored that situation by listening into the US Military communications system. They indeed totally destroyed everything and sifted through what was left very carefully. They spent 42 days there examining everything. It is indeed unlikely they missed anything of importance. They even demolished every building's foundation and dug deeper looking for hidden rooms. I consider the likelihood of finding anything worthwhile at less than 1% probability."

Max had been thinking hard. "Granolith—are there any planets allied to the Rebels?"

"Not officially. However Lord Lanar of Granular has accepted many refugees from Antar and it is suspected that he covertly supports the rebellion."

"Can you contact him?"

"It would have to be an official message from you as King Zan to Lord Lanar."

That worried Liz. "That would make it a possibility that Kivar could then find out about the Royal Four."

"That is correct."

"We will need to talk about this and come to a decision. We will be back in one week with the decision."

"I will wait."

They all met back at the House, and the debate was long and contentious. But in the end, it was agreed that sending the Message was probably the best solution. At least they might get enough information to decide whether or not to go back to Antar. Liz was of the opinion that going straight to Antar would be a mistake—better to go to Granular first and then try and find out more about what was happening on Antar. After some more debate, that was agreed to as well. It was still decided to wait the full week just in case someone came up with a better idea. Liz talked to Courtney who admitted that, as far as she knew, what they had hypothesized could be true—there was no true way to communicate directly with the home world, and they might have been talking to a computer with a simple programming message.

That next Sunday, they were back in the chamber with the Granolith. Max stood before it as it transmitted this message to Granular:

"Lord Lanar of Granular. I greet you as the reborn King Zan of Antar. Our pods malfunctioned, and we were not born until 11 Earth years ago. We are now just approaching our 17th year. As you can see, the Granolith is with us, and we are now trying to find out what the situation is on Antar. Any information you can give us would be greatly appreciated."

The Granolith hummed loudly. "The message has been received on Granular. I have no idea how long a reply might take. I would estimate that Lord Lanar would want to make sure it is genuine and not a trick. I would say that it will be several days before he replies. I will send a message to you, King Zan, by mental telepathy when the reply comes."

Liz looked very interested at that. "You can read minds or send mind messages?"

"Only those that are encoded as part of my programming. The Royal four and their replacements are encoded—their DNA was altered to make that possible. I can send messages, but I cannot enter their minds unless they are physically touching my sensor."

Maria said "Well that's a relief. I do not want any machine or anyone messing around in my mind."

Michael could not resist. "A lot more dangerous for it then for you."

"Watch it, Spaceboy. I know where you sleep."

"Well you should by now."

The rest of them left, but the Granolith asked that Max and Liz remain.

The Granolith spoke again. "Elizabeth Claudia Parker, Mate of King Zan, I have finished the tests on the tissue sample as regards the special energy you have. My estimate is that it would take approximately one year for your energy to completely leave you—the energy you would get from Antar would partially replace it, but gradually, it would fade away. I also believe that once you returned to Earth, your immortality would return. I also estimate that you could indeed bear children after one year on Antar."

Liz closed her eyes for a moment, then looked at Max. What they both wanted. But what price would they have to pay?

Max had just left school to go home on Wednesday, and since Isabel was catching a ride with Maria and Liz and going shopping at the Mall, he was alone when he felt a tingling feeling in his head.

"King Zan, this is the Granolith. I have the reply from Lard Lanar. He will formally speak to you on Friday at 11 your time in the morning."

Max nodded to himself. Well they were going to find out something, anyway.

Lord Lanar had been astounded at being contacted by the Granolith and King Zan. He had spent two days researching and trying to decide how to answer. He had to make sure that this King Zan was indeed the hybrid replacement they had all been waiting so long to come forward. Malfunctioning of the pods explained the delay—if he was indeed who he said he was. Some of his advisors were skeptical, but Lord Lanar was not. He was well aware of the power of the granolith, and if it vouched for this young King, then that was that. The situation on Antar was much as it had been for many years. Kivar controlled the main cities, but the rebellion was strong in the country. Kivar's rule had been hard and capricious, and that more than anything else had kept the rebellion going. If the Royal Four returned, it could very well tip the balance and defeat Kivar. Many were very tired of him and his small clique of toadies.

They were all gathered in the Chamber at the time designated. Liz would stand with Max while the rest would stay just out of sight. Cutting school was not a big deal for any of them—considering how important it was. However the Sheriff arranged for them to be absent due to being witnesses to that accident and depositions required—only the Sheriff knew that that was bogus.

Max had dressed in a simple blue smock—it would look different, and from what the Granolith said, it would fit this situation. Liz was dressed the same. They waited tensely for the Granolith to relay the message. It would be a two way video and audio transmission.

The granolith began to hum loudly—always a signal it was doing something important.

Suddenly there was a projection standing in the room about 10 feet away from Max and Liz. He looked human—except that his eyes were dark pupils, and he had silver hair—that looked metallic.

"I am Lord Lanar, ruler of Granular. I greet you, King Zan of Antar."

Max straightened. The granolith had briefed him on protocol.

"Greetings to you, Lord Lanar. In this life, I am King Max, King Zan is the past ruler. I present to you my Mate and Queen, Elizabeth." Liz stepped forward to stand with Max.

Lord Lanar observed the two. They were indeed young, though he was not too sure just how young since humans looked younger quite often from their true age. However, the seriousness in their eyes and steadiness with which they met his gage told him much. Especially her eyes—they looked far older than his did. Unless he was mistaken, she had already seen much in her short years. She had the makings of a fine Queen.

"Greatly honored am I to be the first of the Pegasus system to see the new King and Queen of Antar. I wish I had better news. Kivar still rules most of Antar, the cities and large population areas. The Rebels hold the country and far lands. Fighting is not widespread, has not been for some years. It is mostly a stalemate. But balanced as it is, it would not take a lot to tip. Your return, the Royal Four's return with the Granolith, would almost certainly tip the balance your way, and I believe much of Kivar's forces would join you. He has been a capricious and bad ruler, and many hate him but fear to oppose him. But once he is seen to be losing, the collapse will come quickly."

Liz stepped forward to face Lanar. It had been decided to practice a little diversion by making it appear she would be the aggressive one. Max frankly thought that it was not really all that much wrong—with her recent fighting experience, she had become more aggressive.

Lanar raised an eyebrow as she stepped forward. His initial summing up of them was looking more and more accurate. Was she the real power behind the throne?

"I am of the opinion that first we must land on Granular to inspire the refugees that you have been so generous to allow asylum. Word will reach Kivar and elsewhere—but he will not know where we intend to land on Antar. He will have to spread his forces rather than concentrate them. We can then pick the best place to strike first."

Lord Lanar was astonished at the young woman's grasp of tactics and strategy. It was exactly what he was going to recommend. This was looking more and more promising by the moment.

"I was about to recommend that myself, your majesty. Now it's just a question of when you make your move. King Max, that decision of course is yours to make. But I strongly advice it be soon—or the secret might get out and dilute the impact."

Max nodded. "How much time do you think we have?"

"I would say in all probability, if I have your time correctly, approximately at most one month."

Liz sighed. She had hoped to finish the school year, but that was almost two months off. Oh, well, being valedictorian was no longer that big a deal anyway.

Max nodded slowly. "We will contact you with the date in the next Earth week."

Lord Lanar bowed. "Until we meet again, good wishes and health, King Max."

Liz could not resist. "Live Long and Prosper, Lord Lanar."

It was decided to bring everyone together that night at the House. There were some big decisions to be made. Liz had called up Duncan a day ago and told him rather obliquely what was up. He told her he would be right down. Duncan, Richie, Methos, Amanda, Charlie, and Joe were all there that night. Liz had told Duncan to bring Joe as well since he was going to have to make a decision on Cynthia—did she have to follow Liz no matter what? Liz had decided to wait until they got there to spring what the Granolith had told her about Immortality. She had a hunch it would have a big effect on them as well.

When they arrived, Liz took the other immortals into the back yard to tell them what the Granolith had told her.

Duncan was stunned by the news that traveling to another world would remove their immortality. He wistfully thought of Tessa and how she would have reacted.

Being young, Richie had not yet really come to grips with not having children, but it made him think.

Methos had over the millennia thought about having children—now that there might be a possibility, the Ancient Immortal found himself conflicted deeply.

Amanda was in the same boat as Methos—having had 1000 years to come to grips with not having children, and now to have that possibility waived under her nose…

Grace was perhaps the most conflicted of all. One of her deep driving reasons behind being a doctor all these centuries was the fact that never being able to have children made her want to protect others all the more. She was aware that her research over the years had helped in certain areas (always anonymously or under someone else's name), and she would lose that future possibility, but to have children…

Charlie was very worried that Cynthia would have to go—and if she went, so did he.

Joe was thinking very hard. Did he have a right to send Cynthia or not? This was certainly to his mind above and beyond the call. And if the Granolith was right and Liz became Mortal, then what was the point of a Watcher? The implications though of possibilities for Immortals were immense—he wondered where his duty was now—did he tell the Council, which meant exposing the Royal Four, even if they were no longer on Earth? That could very well mean that they could never come back without being hunted down. The US Military would find out sooner or later if the council did, or maybe someone else would. He made a decision. He would leave the question of going to Cynthia, and what she wanted went. And he would not tell the council. At least for as long as he could; if necessary he would have Cynthia put together something that indicated Liz lost her head in an accident or something like that. Anything to buy time.

Cynthia was thinking very hard. This was an incredible happening—the possibility to travel far into the Galaxy to other worlds. Of course the war was something else to consider. Liz losing her immortality—but to have children. Cynthia could understand that—being with Charlie the last few months had made her aware of the fact that she wanted them too. She felt that she had to go—for more than just being the watcher to Liz. Then Charlie made it clear that if she went, he went. That complicated things even more.

The hybrids and their mates all were thinking hard. Maria made it very clear that where Michael went, she went. Alex was the same, and so was Kyle. Liz had already made the decision. Her parents were not happy she was going into the war zone, but Nancy certainly understood part of the reason—it had always hurt not being able to have children; and she could see herself willing to take a very big risk if it meant being able to. Jeff was terrified for his daughter but knew it was her decision and that he had to support her no matter how much it scared him.

The Sheriff understood well the situation and knew it would be up to him and those left behind to try and cover things up. Transfer to a private school or something like that. It would be difficult but not impossible. The real problem was the Evans' and Alex's parents who knew nothing of what was going on.

Max had already stated he was going. Michael was right there with him. Isabel as well. Tess realized that the pull of being part of this group was pushing her right along, and she accepted that.

Liz had quietly told Courtney that the Granolith had asked Lord Lanar to accept her going along, and she could return to her home world. Courtney had to stop and think very hard. She really did not want to go back—she had much more freedom on Earth then she would ever have there. True there was no one of her species on Earth, but then she had never really felt the need to be with anyone. One of the reasons those had been chosen to go to Earth was they were seen to not really need to have families. She decided that she would go with Liz and the rest and stand at their side. Liz told her that Lord Lanar had told the Granolith that getting her a new skin would not be a problem on Granular. She could get a new one very quickly. Courtney then decided to put her new skin on Earth on hold and leave it there—if she made it back, she would need it. But otherwise, she would stay on Earth.

Duncan and Amanda had a long conversation. Things were said that had been in the back of their minds for a very long time. Grace and Methos did the same. Richie really did not have much of an interest in going—and told Duncan that if he did, he could hold things down at the Dojo for quite a while if necessary. Joe told Duncan he would help out—especially if Charlie went with Cynthia if she went.

Grace talked to Liz, and Liz made it very clear that she had had a long talk with the Granolith. Ships were available to make the run, and it would take them less than a year. She thought that the Immortals should wait and see what happened. Liz would be their guinea pig. She told Duncan and Amanda the same—wait and see. After a long talk, the Immortals agreed. Duncan, as an old soldier and as Liz's teacher, felt the urge to go with her—but Amanda convinced him that waiting was the best thing for right now. Their real reason to go was for children, and they would not know if anything really changed for at least a year or so. Liz was relieved that they would stay—she did not want them to lose their Immortality and find out they got nothing in return. For her, it was a fairly easy decision. But then she had been immortal for a very short time.

It was decided to bring the Evans and Whitmans in on the alien scene. Alex, Max and Isabel all agreed that their parents needed to know. Max had wanted to tell their parents for a long time, but Isabel had always been afraid of their reaction. In the end, it did not matter as it was found out that their parents had long suspected something was different about their children but just did not know what it was. Philip had to admit he never considered Aliens, and that was kind of stupid. Diane as well thought that they should have put 2 and 2 together long ago. The Whitmans were pretty laid back people, but this definitely shocked them. However, they had long believed that you raised your children the best you can, but in the end, their lives were their own. So that turned out as good as could be expected—the cover story would be supported by all concerned. Maria decided that her mother needed to know. That turned out to be the wildest scene of all as Amy totally lost it, and Michael had to basically bind her to keep her from throwing pots and pans and anything she could get her hands on. She thought it was drugs until Michael bound her (one of the powers they had discovered in their work lately). He then changed her living room sofa into a book case. Let her go to actually touch it. She then promptly fainted. When she revived, she just cried. After settling down, she felt that it would be better to say Maria got an opportunity to sing in a band out east and went there, and Michael went with her. Since there was no way that Maria or Michael were good enough students for a special school, while Liz, Max, Alex and Isabel would be. The story on Tess would be that she was going back to where she came from; Kyle would be going to a prep academy. They felt that that would be enough to divert suspicion at all these students leaving at about the same time.

Liz was on her balcony the next night doing her KATA. She would be taking her sword with her since you never knew when any weapon would come in handy. Besides, the nightly exercise helped her relax. She was a little worried since Cynthia had told her she was coming along. And of course Charlie was as well. Courtney too. Max and the other Hybrids were worried about their mates, but they were coming, and that was that. Liz had talked to Courtney, and they had decided that she would stay with Kyle, Maria, and Alex to help protect them. Charlie was pretty tough and capable, so at least there was some comfort there.

Joe was quietly glad that Duncan was not going to Antar. He agreed with Liz that they should wait and see what happens. Though he had a hankering to go if Duncan eventually did. What an opportunity.

Liz had just finished when she saw Max appear at the top of the fire escape. She had had a hunch he would be coming by. She knew him well by now and knew he was starting to doubt things and brooding.

Max was indeed having second thoughts. But as he saw Liz finish her KATA, he realized that the decisions had been made, and it was now up to them to make it all work. Now he just needed to be with his girl and try and forget what was coming for just a little while.

Liz was surprised as Max came to her and just picked her up and sat down with her in his lap and just held her. She was quite content as well.

Alex once again took Isabel out to his favorite place to watch the stars. They hardly said a word as they held each other and watched.

Kyle and Tess sat on the back porch of the House and watched the stars as well. Kyle quietly told Tess that he would be there for her no matter what, always. For someone who had been alone and lonely for most of her life, Tess had no words—she just held him as he held her.

Maria and Michael found themselves just sitting outside and watching the stars just like everyone else. They held hands and said very little—not that there was much that needed to be said.

Duncan and Amanda, Methos and Grace, Charlie and Cynthia; they spent the night in each other's arms. Quietly talking about life and possibilities. Richie and Courtney talked as they walked around the neighborhood; he was very curious about her life here on Earth, and Courtney found that she liked talking to him.

Preparations were frantic over the next few days as the cover stories were let out and the various people involved carefully worked the people around them to prevent any suspicion. Jeff and Nancy were very emotional, and Liz made it a point to spend as much time with them as she could. The other parents were doing their best, but their fear was evident when at home. Tension was running high as the sands of the hour glass steadily flowed away.

As the time came close, all those involved headed towards the chamber. They would all make the trip in the DeLuca van escorted by the Sheriff with Amy with him. She would drive the van back after it was over. Each person had a backpack with what they felt they needed to take with them. Everything else they needed would be waiting for them on Granular. Liz took her sword, but that was the only openly held weapon. Charlie took a knife quietly strapping it to his boot. He always made it a point to go nowhere new without at least something.

The Granolith hummed as it prepared to transport itself and all of them in one massive burst of power. It would explode through the top of the hill where it had bored itself in more than 50 years earlier. The sheriff hoped no one noticed, but he had brought some explosives with him, and if necessary, he would destroy the pods to make sure no one found the site and got curious.

Liz and Max, Michael and Maria, Isabel and Alex, Kyle and Tess, Charlie and Cynthia, with Courtney bringing up the rear entered the chamber and stood before the Granolith.

"Stand together, and all hold hands—you must all be linked. You will be pulled into a pocket of energy and encased to protect you during the journey. You will be in suspended animation so you will not sense the passage of time and space. I believe you will dream, but I am not certain. This has only been done at what would be considered short range before, and it is not certain what you will feel and see. However, you will be safe and protected as regards your physical bodies."

Just before the journey began, Maria has to have the last word. "If I get turned inside out, Spaceboy, I am going to haunt you for eternity!"

It was like falling and yet not falling; moving at a tremendous speed and yet not moving at all. Liz could not grasp the feeling and emotions and senses that poured through her and around her. Then everything stopped. Slowly becoming aware, she opened her eyes and found herself standing on what felt like solid ground. Looking around her, she saw the others doing as she was. Just trying to figure out what happened. She looked up and saw a bluish purple sky with a large sun and a small sun much farther away. At least a Binary system, she thought. The ground was dark gray, not quite black. Around them was a stone wall about 10 ft high—it looked ancient, the rocks worn and smooth. There was an entrance off to their left. The Granolith stood right in the middle of that area surrounded by the stone wall, softly humming. Liz realized she was still holding Max's hand. He was blinking and looking around. She tugged her hand from him, making him look at her.

"Well we certainly are somewhere. Now let's see if it is the right place." She walked up to the Granolith. "Granolith, are we on Granular?"

"Yes—this location is away from the capital city, Granularly. Lord Lanar wanted us to appear out of the city so that he could have better security. This is an old temple thousands of years older than I am. At that time, they worshipped the Sun and had a very simple temple—this."

Liz shook her head slightly. And I appear on Holy Ground.

The granolith spoke again. "Lord Lanar will be here in a short while. You thus have time to relax and acclimate."

Maria snorted. "We come all this way, and he is not here waiting for us? Rude much?"

Liz smiled at Maria. "No big, Maria. We can chill for a while."

Maria looked around. "Not like there is much else to do."

Liz decided to relax herself with a familiar ritual. Putting down her backpack, she took out her sword and began her KATA.

Lord Lanar, riding in the first of three hovercars that will pick up the Royal Four and their party, sighted the old temple that had been chosen. As he got closer he could see the Granolith in the middle and the party surrounding it. He noticed one of them—appearing to do some kind of dance. As he got a better look, he realized it was Queen Elizabeth, and she had a sword in her hand and was, if he could remember correctly, doing some kind of exercise with it. Swords had been mostly ceremonial for many millennia, but many still practiced and spared with them. She was fast and graceful, and while he had not seen many people work with a sword, he could tell she was very good indeed. Just one more interesting fact about her adding to an already impressive list.

Max looked up as he heard something coming. It appeared to be some kind of flying vehicle. Three of them to be exact. And they were coming this way. He hoped it was Lord Lanar. He was about to tell Liz, who was completely caught up in her KATA, when he had second thoughts and decided to let them see her work with her sword.

The three hovercars landed just outside the temple, and Lord Lanar led his small party through the entrance. He found the Royal Four and party facing him, Queen Elizabeth still doing her exercise. She seemed to finish just as he stepped up closer. She faced him with her sword up in a pose he recognized as a classic defensive posture. She lowered it and stepped to King Max's side, but she did not put the sword away—rather she had it ready to be used. Her alert status and protective gesture towards the King just further crystallized Lord Lanar's impression that she was indeed a power behind the throne.

"Greetings King Max and party. Welcome to Granular. We will travel to the Palace just outside the capital city in the hovercars you just saw land. One thing that must be done—the Granolith must be hidden."

Max turned towards the Granolith. "I take it that that is not a problem." And the granolith disappeared. Max nodded. "Thought not." He turned towards Lord Lanar. "We are ready to go."

Lord Lanar blinked and looked towards where the Granolith had been, and there was nothing there. He shook his head and turned to Max. "You will have no trouble contacting it?"

"None at all. It can telepathically contact me at any time." Lord Lanar slowly nodded.

The ride to the Palace was very interesting. The City looked like, to a certain extent, a city of Feudal Times with the stone wall and stone buildings—but once you looked a little closer, you could see smaller hovercars at a much lower altitude around the city. There were no modern skyscrapers as such—they were not needed as the population of Granular was not large. Only about 100 million on the entire planet—of which more than a quarter were originally Antarian refugees and their descendents. Even the capital city had a population of less than a million. Granular had been mainly agricultural all its history. Other planets had more industry—Granular and Antar were the two planets that provided most of the food. Of course with the war, Granular had become the primary food producing planet. The stone homes were in many cases over a millennia old, many generations of the same family in the same homes in the city doing most of the maintenance and technical work while outside the city were the huge family farms and ranches that were also in many cases several millennia old. Everywhere was the impression of great age and tradition.

The Palace looked just like some movies images of Camelot, complete with battlements and towers; though modern doors and windows were also apparent. As well as lights and other modern improvements. They landed in the court yard, and Lord Lanar gestured for them to follow him inside the castle. Gathering in what appeared to be the main throne room, Lord Lanar told them that they would be escorted to their rooms. Appropriate clothing would be waiting for them. A large banquet that would only include those that needed to know of their presence would be held in about 2 hours.

Max and Liz followed a man dressed like a medieval page up two flights of stairs and went inside the large room he gestured to. As they went in he closed the door behind them. A huge bed dominated the room, with large closets on both sides as well as a finely built table with four chairs. Liz explored some finding an absolutely huge bathroom with a sunken tub big enough for a football team.

"Well, we certainly must have gotten one of the prime rooms, and if not, I cannot imagine what that must look like." Liz said as she dropped her backpack on the table and decided to try out the bed. It was soft and luxurious, the sheets appearing to be silk-like and the heavy blankets very intricately embroidered.

Max smiled at Liz and dropped his backpack besides hers and joined her on the bed. "We are called Mates, but nothing has been formalized. Unless it's not necessary."

Liz smiled back at him. "We are in every way that matters except one. And I think tonight would be a fine night to complete things." She then laid back and smiled demurely.

Max blinked and reddened but did not back down. "Are you sure?"

"Very sure."

Liz had had to see what was in the giant closets and found gowns and clothes too numerous to count and too beautiful to believe. She was hopelessly torn at what to wear. She finally decided on a long dress beautifully cut and simple in adornment. She pulled it out and realized it was an off the shoulder gown that fit her almost perfectly. Tight just where it needed to be and loose and flowing everywhere else. Max had found simple clothing that was actually labeled as for court matters and such. Flowing silk like shirts and slacks and fine looking sandal-like shoes. Liz had taken her gown into the bathroom, and Max quickly changed and got ready.

Liz looked at the magnificent gown and decided to be naughty and wear nothing under it. It would not be noticed, and tonight, Max was going to get a big surprise when they got back to their room. Just her sandals and the gown and nothing else.

Max could not hold back the gasp of awe as Liz appeared in that magnificent white gown. It immediately came to mind that it might as well be a wedding gown—she was so beautiful.

Moments later came a knock on the door. "Your Majesties, if you are ready?"

Max called out. "We are." He then took Liz's hand and they walked out the opened door. Max was proud to see the pages eyes widen as they took in Liz. He felt very proud of the very beautiful young woman at his side.

Max and Liz were the last ones to enter the main dining hall. All the rest of them were standing at the table with about a dozen other Granularians and Lord Lanar. All eyes were on them—then all eyes were on Liz. She had been able to fix her hair in a topknot that looked quite queenly.

The rest of the party were all wearing find clothes, the women wore beautiful gowns all in their favorite colors. But only Liz was in white. And she above all others stood out. Max escorted her to the top of the table where Lord Lanar bowed to them and gestured to the two chairs at the very top while he sat to their right.

Lord Lanar was quite taken with the Young Queen. He wondered if she realized the significance of White and thought not, yet it was very appropriate considering her age and who she was with. He wondered if he should tell them that a young woman wearing white in her first public appearance was declaring her intentions to marry the man she was escorted by. Since they were already supposedly mates, it was not necessary, yet it seemed somehow very right. She certainly was a very beautiful young woman.

Liz had talked to the Granolith about palace protocol before they left, so she realized that no one else could sit until the king did, so she tugged on Max's hand and gestured to the chairs. He got the point and sat down, and she and the rest followed.

Lord Lanar was once again surprised how quickly the young queen seemed to adapt to this new situation. He quietly told them that there would be no speeches or anything like that to keep the secrets as long as they could. This was just a meet and greet dinner.

Liz quite enjoyed the meal, even if it was a little bland, it still tasted quite good. Lord Lanar told them that the food grown here was very much like what he had been able to find out about earth crops and domesticated food animals. Different and tasted different but in many ways the same.

Once the meal was finished, they all gathered in the throne room again, and Lord Lanar made sure all others left the room and closed the door. He then took out a small device and touched it and sat it down on a small table in the middle of the room.

"This should ensure that no one can overhear what we say here. Tomorrow morning we will have a full meeting with my command staff, and we will then look the situation over and make the necessary plans for the liberation of Antar. A quick visit to two of the main areas that most of the Antarians have settled in will serve to have the agents that we know Kivar have planted there see you and inform him of your presence. We will then wait a few days, and then strike Antar. And then it will be up to your people to rise and take Kivar down."

Max nodded. Liz thought some—then spoke. "I think we can probably speed things up a little. Once we make the appearance and Kivar is informed, we should move the very next day or at most two days later. We want him caught alerting his forces and right in the middle of what would have to be confusing orders to his forces, since he would have no way of figuring out when and where we would strike. That would be the best time to hit him."

Lord Lanar nodded. She had a point. Once again.

Liz and Max slowly followed the same page up the stairs to their room. Once inside Liz moved towards the bed, stretching and yawning widely.

Max was a little unsure of what to do, so he just took off his sandals and moved towards Liz. With her back to him, he could not see the very womanly smile she had on her face as she felt him get closer.

Max moved right behind Liz, loving the bare shoulders the gown showed, and the delicate hair piled in a topknot, silky and dark and so beautiful and rich.

Liz smiled again. "Max, could you just undue that back hook—it's hard for me to get to."

Carefully he undid it, not wanting to tear the delicate material. Liz reached back and held the two ends, and then turned Max. And then pulled them apart and let the gown fall to the floor.

Max groaned at the sight of the naked beauty in front of him, wearing nothing but sandals and a very sexy smile.

Max opened his eyes and was aware of something very different. Looking down, he saw a silky curtain of dark hair resting on his chest, and realized that it had not been a dream. Liz was still asleep, and it was incredible to feel her naked and resting on him. He laid there holding his lover and remembering.

Liz had been very daring and creative, and despite the fact that both of them were total novices, the night had been unbelievable. He now for sure knew what the term soul mate meant.

Liz blinked slowly and realized where she was, and what they had done the night before. She looked up into Max's eyes and smiled, then moved up to kiss him.

Liz was so beautiful, and then she opened her eyes and kissed him.

Smiling at him, she said, "Thank you for last night, my love."

"Thank you for last night, my life."

There was a knock on the door. "Your Majesties, breakfast will be served in one hour."

Max called out. "Thank You."

They looked at each other, smiled, got out of bed, and went into the bathroom together.

About 45 minutes later, they came out.

At breakfast, Lord Lanar asked Max if they were ready to visit the Antarian refugees today. Max agreed and told Lanar that they wanted to get it started right away. Lord Lanar then told Max that he would be leaving to arrange the visits which would commence that afternoon.

Alex had been asking one of Lord Lanar's assistants about the technology used in the hover cars and for power sources. When told that most sources were solar, Alex was curious about what research had been done as regards the mental powers of the people. Asked to specify what research, Alex asked if there had been found ways to block or dampen powers by technology. The assistant had no knowledge of such, but did know someone who might, and went to get him. Alex then talked to Liz who was very interested. The person in the know was brought to them, and both Liz and Alex peppered him with questions. It turned out that some research had been done on blocking, dampening, and enhancing powers, but it had never seemed to amount to much. Interestingly enough, a laboratory in the palace had been used for those experiments some years ago, and he thought that the equipment was still there. Both Liz and Alex asked to see it and were taken there.

Max, Michael, and Lord Lanar's chief assistant went into a small room filled with maps of Antar and data on the war, and Max and Michael were fully briefed on the current status. They commenced to look for the place to land on Antar.

The rest of the party decided to poke around the palace and get used to this new world.

Alex, Liz and the tech, who was called Zegrod, went over the notes left by the experiments—they had been done over 100 years earlier. Liz, remembering some of the physics she had taken and something that Grace had mentioned about the quickening energy, then mentally asked the Granolith for help. She had been surprised that she was able to connect, but the Granolith told her that as the King's Mate and Queen, that was standard. Liz relayed all that she saw and read to the Granolith. It took the readings from the Royal Four, the readings it got from her as regards the quickening energy, then put it all together and came back with a formula that would probably serve to basically block, or white out as using white noise to block regular noise, and if put together with a big enough power source, would prevent anyone from using their powers.

Alex and Zegrod examined the formula, and Alex was startled to find out that the concept of blocking one energy with a matching other energy was unheard of. He was told that research had been lacking ever since the war started, and had not really been well supported ever before. That very much surprised Liz, but after thinking about it, she realized that in this very old culture, what was new and different did not have the attraction it did for humans on Earth. There had been no great technological breakthroughs for literally hundreds if not thousands of years. Liz was beginning to wonder if all the civilizations here were stagnating. Alex was more caught up with the realization that the equipment here could be modified to block the power use for up to 100 yards away. He right away began to get it ready. Liz approved saying that blocking the use of powers could very well be a true secret weapon. Liz set off to tell Max what they had discovered.

Zalarias was a low level assistant to Lord Lanar and a spy for Kivar. He had just learned that the Royal four were at the palace. Not in a position to send a message, the ambitious agent decided to try and put himself in Kivar's good graces by assassinating the young King. It should be easy—just walk in and blast him, then run. The young King would be caught totally by surprise.

Liz headed into the main hall and saw what looked like one of Lord Lanar's assistants look around furtively, then head toward the room where she knew Max and Michael were. Suspicious, she pulled out her sword (Max had joked that she slept with it, and she reminded him that now he knew that was not true) and followed him. She saw him open the door and start to raise his hand—she jumped towards him and put her sword up against his throat.

Zalarias was stunned to feel what looked like a sword at his throat. Then terrified when a low voice told him "Move. Blink. Do anything, and I cut your throat. Now lower your hand and walk slowly forward. Any move you make otherwise will be your last."

Max and the others looked up to see an assistant of Lord Lanar slowly walk into the room with Liz at his back and her sword at his throat.

"This guy was sneaking around, opened the door and started to raise his hand. I thought that maybe an explanation is in order."

Lord Lanar's senior assistant shook his head. "He is not authorized to know about the Royal Four. He should not be here. You might just have captured one of Kivar's spies."

Lord Lanar was not particularly surprised at the report—he had long suspected that his staff had been penetrated and had operated on that assumption for years. Zalarias had been questioned and had confessed to being in Kivar's pay for some years. He claimed not to have been able to get the opportunity to send a message and had thought to put himself forward by trying to assassinate the King. Lord Lanar thought that that was probably true and that the afternoon visit should go as scheduled. Michael was dubious but went along. Liz agreed saying the cocky little idiot was too stupid to have done anything as smart as first sending a message.

The two visits went well. The refugees were overwhelmed at the realization that the Royal Four were finally back, and were heartened at the thought that they might be able to go home soon. Lord Lanar had monitoring devices going all around the areas, and two separate messages were sent out aimed towards Antar. So it appeared the first part of the plan was going as hoped.

Kivar was enraged that he had had no warning about the existence of the Royal Four let alone that they were already on Granular. His chief of intelligence paid the price for his failure; his remains were scraped up and removed from the Antarian Palace throne room. Kivar then ordered all his units on full alert and began to give orders for moving them to cover high value targets that he expected to be attacked.

Lord Lanar's intelligence service was fully concentrating on Kivar's main units and right away noted the beginning of extensive shifting of positions. Max agreed that the next morning would be the time to strike—the units would be in transit and at their most vulnerable. Alex's dampening equipment had already been tested by Max and Michael and found to work. There was extensive effort to make more of them—but that would take a few days. It was decided to take the first unit with them on their first attack—right at the unit that was moving to protect the main communications center in the capital city of Antar, Antaris.

A volunteer carrying the device would be posted on the route that Kivar's unit would take. As they passed him, they would be attacked by Max and Michael and other volunteers from Lord Lanar's troops. This was mainly a way to get Kivar's attention and by attacking so close to him, it should force him to make more movements.

The plan worked beautifully—the unit was not prepared at all to be powerless and were easily taken out by the weapons used by Max and the others. Only full-blooded Antarians and Granularians could use powers, and that was what Kivar used to make up his main units. They were small, usually 10-12 in each, but they were vital to his ability to stay in power.

It would be a different story with other units that used weapons instead of power. The techs were taking Alex's device and using directions from the Granolith and were modifying it to dampen any energy weapon—which would then make the troops on both sides use non-energy-type weapons such as knives and swords; projectile weapons had never really been developed. Basic training was given in those old weapons but rarely anymore than that.

Liz had been left behind on the attack much to her chagrin, but Max told her that this was just the first one, and she would get to join in on the next. Worried about Max but realizing that that was pointless, she began to work on another idea she had had. Using the city power source to completely knock out all other energy sources and preventing anyone with powers from using them. She thought that those people above all others would be ill prepared to compensate for such a sudden and unexpected event.

Fresh from their first victory, Max and Michael returned to the palace to find that the geeks had taken over—first Alex and his stuff, and then Liz and her really big idea. Lord Lanar had taken to it in a big way and had ordered all available resources put onto the task. In less than a day, it was found that not only was it possible, but relatively easy. So plans were made to move a unit in to the Antaris City power plant and make the necessary modifications. Lord Lanar's best units would be used. The rebels on Antar, meanwhile, had started a general assault on all of Kivar's units—just hit and run raids at the moment, but all over the planet.

Kivar panicked. He ordered all his best units back to Antaris and placed most of them around his palace and treasury, and the private spaceport at the Government buildings nearby. He intended to escape if things went bad.

Lord Lanar's intelligence chief had used the confusion in Kivar's forces to plant more agents and listening devices. He was able to get a fairly clear picture of what was going on and had informed Lord Lanar.

Lanar was stunned at how quickly the situation was developing. Kivar had panicked and had played right into his enemies hands. By concentrating all his best units in one area, he was making them vulnerable to being taken out all at once, which would doom him. The data about the treasury and Government spaceport proved that Kivar was already thinking escape. That mindset was a virtual guarantee of defeat for Kivar.

The entire group was gathered and told that things were happening a lot faster than they had originally thought. The big attack would come in the next day or two, as soon as the power dampening devices were ready and the big one installed at the Antaris city power plant. Charlie, as an old hand at improving weapons and such, had been busily helping get crossbows and the like ready for the assault. That would give the rebels a big advantage over Kivar's troops, who would have none except knives and swords once they could not use their powers or energy weapons.

The plan was to hit Kivar's forces separately using the portable devices, then power up the big one when they attacked the Palace. If things worked out as they hoped, in only a few days, the war would be over. Already there were signs on Antar that Kivar's forces out away from the capital were losing heart and retreating, and in some cases just running.

Lord Lanar also made preparations to intercept any ships leaving Antar if Kivar tried to escape. Only his death or capture would ensure that the war ended.

That night, all the couples spent all the time they could get together. As well as things were going, they all knew that tomorrow might be the last day for some of them.

Max and Liz lay next to each other, still recovering from the almost frantic lovemaking of the last few hours. Max then thought about whether the short time they had been there had had any effect on Liz's quickening. She was surprised that she herself had not thought about it. Getting out of bed, she padded over to the armory and found a small knife. Max's appreciative whistle at her nude journey brought a giggle from her. She climbed back into bed and then made sure a small cloth was handy to catch the blood when she cut her hand. The blue sparks healed the wound in seconds, just like it had before.

Liz was thoughtful. "We have only been here a few days, so it's kind of stupid to think anything has changed this fast. It will probably take months for us to notice anything."

"I am just happy that you are still immortal. In the fight that is coming, that will be a comfort to me."

The morning came and saw all gathered in the main Dining Hall to eat can get ready. After a rancorous meeting the previous evening, the plans had finally been agreed on. Maria, Alex, Kyle, Charlie, and Cynthia had made it clear they were not going to stay on Granular. Maria pointed out that Kivar had people all over, and an attempt to kidnap them and hold them as hostages had to be a possibility. Max had reluctantly agreed. Courtney would stay with them to keep an eye on them. Charlie was going to be helping teach the soldiers how to use the crossbows that he had designed and that were frantically being made even as they met. Liz told Cynthia that while she knew it was her job to watch, that this time she was going to be farther back. They would stay with the support units following the combat troops. Alex was still working on refining the dampening equipment and would be at the power plant. It had then been decided that the others except for Charlie would stay with Alex there.

The plan went as follows: at noon, the attacks would commence on the units Kivar had drawn into the city, using the portable dampening devices. At approximately 2PM, the main dampener at the power plant would be started up. At that point, the attack would commence on Kivar's palace.

Max and Liz walked hand in hand outside the palace early that morning. There were no spoken words; none were needed. Each knew the other would be right there no matter what happened that day.

The Granolith had been transporting Max and the others to Antar so as to not tip off anyone; ships moving back and forth could be tracked. It would move with them this time and stay on Antar until it was all over. Liz had suggested that, since they might need it and it was easier to contact it when it was close at hand.

At 11AM, they all gathered at the old temple next to the Granolith. All of Lanar's forces had already been moved into position. The Antarian Rebels had also gotten ready and were waiting for the Royal Four to arrive to lead the assault. Max and the others would not participate on the first attacks so as to not alert Kivar they were already on Antar. They would transport to Antar just after the first attacks had begun, and then carefully move into position around the Palace and Government building.

The Granolith began to hum louder, and they all tensed up ready to go. Then they got the same feeling as the first transport only it was over very quickly, and they were standing on Antar. Liz looked around—the sky was virtually the same as Granular, only the Suns were in different positions, and the large moon Olaawdon was clearly visible even in broad daylight. They had been landed in a small city park about one mile away from the Palace and Government Building. They were all dressed in the faintly medieval type daily dress of the typical citizen of Antaris. Alex and the others had been directly taken to the Power Plant. Charlie was still with the support troops training crossbowmen right to the last second.

Kivar could not believe that all his units were under attack. There was no way the rebels could have done this; it had to be Lanar and Granular. He vowed revenge. He ordered his men to hold their positions no matter what; anyone who retreated would be executed on the spot. Realizing that he had to make contingency plans, he alerted his pilot and told him to get the ship ready to leave on short notice. He then ordered the treasury placed in the ships hold.

Max, Liz, Michael, Isabel and Tess followed their Rebel guide towards the Palace. Other rebels would attack the Government Building. Lanar had several ships ready to intercept Kivar's if he tried to escape, and the rebels had already sent men to attack the Royal Hanger.

At just about 1:30, Max was told that the initial attacks on Kivar's main units had mostly succeeded; there was still some fighting going on, but the matter was no longer in doubt. He told Lanar's LT to alert the power plant and have the main dampener switched on; they would attack the Palace in 30 minutes.

Alex was fine tuning the main dampener when he got the message. Taking a deep breath he looked over the equipment one last time, then turned and nodded at Zegrod, who threw the main switch. A deep hum started through the device, and a couple of the full blooded Granularians in the main room actually staggered; they told him they were ok but had felt a moment of weakness and dizziness. One of them tried his powers and found nothing; they all looked at each other in relief—it was working.

Kivar was receiving reports that showed his forces steadily losing and had just about decided to head for his ship when a wave of weakness rushed through him; he almost fell. Looking around his remaining troops, he saw that they were all going through the same experience as he was. What was going on?

Max and the others, except for Liz, had to stop and gather themselves. Liz had felt virtually nothing, only a faint tingling. Interesting, she thought. She then contacted the Granolith and asked what it was getting on its sensors. It responded by saying it was as it had expected—then asked how she was able to contact it when Max and the others could not—they had lost their powers which included the ability to contact the Granolith. Yet, she could still do it. It told her it would have to think about this and analyze the data. Liz sent back that it must be something to do with her quickening, and her link to Max, which while much weaker, was still there. The Granolith told her it would take some time to figure this out—this was unexpected.

Liz told Max that she could still contact the Granolith. He shook his head and told her that they might as well give up thinking that they had anything figured out. He took out his crossbow, and the others did the same; that would give them range on anyone with a sword or knife, though they all had those. Liz had given them all a crash course on sword fighting, but warned them to avoid it if at all possible. She was the only one there who would. It was decided that Max and Michael would hit the main door while the Rebels would hit the side and rear doors of the Palace. They would attack first to draw troops away from the main door. Liz would be right behind them with Tess and Isabel bringing up the rear to make sure no one came up behind them.

Kivar was still wondering what happened when the sounds of fighting reached the Throne Room. One of his assistants ran up and told him that the rear and side entrances to the palace were under attack; and that no one could use their powers. At that moment, Kivar realized that the rebels had found a way to do that, and that was why they had all felt that weakness some time ago. He went to the throne and pulled out the Royal Sword; then told his troops to get swords ready. That was how they were going to have to fight.

Max opened the main door and then kicked it wide open as he and Michael rushed through. There were four guards armed with swords moving towards them; they shot two of them then Isabel and Tess coming in shot the other two. Liz headed towards the main stairway that would lead to the Throne Room where they all suspected Kivar would be. Max called for her to wait up, she had already gotten half way up the stairs.

Liz did not know quite what it was; Duncan would tell her later that it was known as Blood Lust; a condition soldiers got when in the heat of battle where they felt the need to strike right at their enemy and do it close up. She kept going up the stairs with Max and the rest running to catch up. She reached the main doors and paused, letting them catch her. She held her sword out, and they got their crossbows ready. Just at that moment several rebels came around the corner. Max greeted them and then told them to open the Throne Room doors. He and the others would then fire at the troops that they bet would be waiting for them; then the rebels would move into the rooms making contact with the rest of the troops. The Royal Four would follow going for Kivar.

Kivar looked at the main doors as they opened, ordering his troops to be ready. The doors opened, and some flying objects shot through and took down several at the front; a group of sword wielding rebels came rushing in, and his troops met them. No one there was any kind of an expert on swords, so a lot of hacking and jabbing and flailing was going on. Kivar felt confident that he could take anyone with a sword; he had trained at an early age and still worked at it every now and then; certainly far more than anyone he had seen so far. He then noticed five more come in the door—but there was something different about them. 3 young women and two young men dressed casually, but there was something different about them. He watched them weave through the melee and head towards him—then he KNEW. It was the Royal Four—but who else was with them. He could just barely recognize the reborn group—King Zan, Princess Vilandra, Lord Rath, Princess Tess, but who else was with them. Then they got close to him and his immediate bodyguard, who advanced to meet them. In the lead was a petite brunette wielding a sword—who immediately sliced through two of his men!

Liz told the rest of them to follow her since SHE knew which end of a sword to use. She then hacked down two soldiers and headed for the last group by the throne, and the tall dark haired man in the fancy clothes that had to be Kivar.

Max was trying to keep up with Liz, but it was hard; her lessons on sword fighting over the last few days plus all the time they had watched her train and fight had helped them more than anyone else, but they were still novices. She was the pro, and she certainly was proving it.

Liz had tunnel vision—Kivar was ahead of her, and she was going to have his head. Two more soldiers rushed towards her with clumsy cuts which she easily parried, then sliced one through the stomach and stabbed the other in the chest.

Kivar gripped his sword. The woman was clearly an experienced swordswoman the way she was slicing through his men. He prepared for the fight he knew would come.

Then Liz was facing Kivar. "We can do this the hard way or the easy way. The Easy way is for you to surrender. The hard way, for you, is that I cut you to pieces."

Kivar felt the rage build in him, and he charged the arrogant woman.

Liz easily slipped aside his charge, though he did seem to have some skill. Of course ,he was much stronger, but that was only a factor if she let it be. She spun and slapped her blade on his backside—saying, "Now that was sloppy. Didn't your trainer teach you anything"

Kivar completely lost his temper and charged her again and again; she easily blocked and spun away. Then She attacked him with two cuts and a slice that he barely avoided, stumbling back.

Max had finally finished off his opponent and turned towards the throne where Liz was battling Kivar. And embarrassing him.

Michael looked around the room and realized the fighting had almost ended. Kivar's last troops were surrendering, and everyone was now watching the last fight, a small woman and Kivar, and the woman was easily beating him!

Liz had Kivar completely off balance barely able to parry her attack. Liz then tried something that Duncan had taught her just before they left. It was a straight thrust to tie up the opponent's sword and let you get close and twist it and force him to drop it. He had told Liz that it was a good thing to also either punch or kick him in the process. So Liz wrapped up his sword, punched him in the nose, and then kicked him in the knee.

Kivar, blinking from the strong blow to his nose, then the sudden pain in his knee, desperately tried to hold onto his sword, but felt him falling as she kicked his other knee. He fell flat on his back his sword flying away—to find her standing over him with her sword to his throat.

"Looks like you got lucky—you get to live to stand trial for murder and treason. You might find that you would rather I had killed you now."

Max stepped up next to Liz. "Kivar, I am King Maxwell, successor to King Zan whom you are now charged with murdering. The charge of High Treason is also to be levied."

He looked towards the leader of the Rebel Group. "Captain, take Kivar into custody and lock him in the dungeon of the palace."

The Rebel Captain nodded and several of his men moved to take Kivar. As he passed Max and Liz, he looked at her and said, "Who are You?"

Max said. "This is my Queen and Mate, Queen Elizabeth"

And the gathering Rebels then proclaimed, "Long Live King Maxwell and Queen Elizabeth!"

Alex and the others were waiting tensely for news. He was confident that the device was working, but this was war and anything could happen. Maria was pacing and making dark threats about what she would do to Spaceboy if he got hurt. Kyle was also pacing, but a lot more quietly. Cynthia was trying to stay busy by writing what she saw and experienced since at the moment she could not be watching her subject. She had gotten word that Charlie had headed towards the palace once the last of his trainees went into the fight. She just hoped he was careful.

Charlie and a few rebels had just gotten to the palace as the fighting ended; he headed up to the throne room to see several rebels leading a fancy dressed type down the stairs. He watched them pass and figured that that had to be Kivar. He went up the stairs and found the throne room full of people cheering Max and Liz and the other royals who were standing by the throne. He pulled out his communicator and called the power plant to let them know it was all over and they were ok.

Alex looked up as a communicator beeped and the Granularian answered it. He looked up at Alex and smiled. "It is all over. Kivar has been captured and the Royal Four are unharmed and triumphant."

Maria looked around and shouted, "Then what are we waiting for—let's get over there! There has got to be one wild party about to start!"

Liz looked down at her blood and gore drenched sword. She looked around and saw a silk-like cloak laying on the floor. She figured it was Kivar's and would do quite nicely to clean off her sword. So she picked it up, sat down on the throne, and started to clean her sword.

Max had conferred with the senior rebel officer who had just come in and told him that the mates of the Royal Four as well as a couple of friends would be coming soon. The Royal Four would stay in the Throne Room for the moment. He looked over for Liz and saw her casually sitting on the throne cleaning her sword with what looked like Kivar's cloak. He smiled and shook his head. She was already surrounded by admiring Rebels.

The Legend of the Last Battle in the Antarian Royal Throne Room began that day and would expand and be added to over the centuries. One thing always agreed upon was how Queen Elizabeth had embarrassed and humiliated Kivar by decisively beating him at sword play. Then had casually sat down on the throne and used Kivar's cloak to clean her sword.

There was indeed quite a celebration that night in Antaris and all around Antar and Granular. Kivar's remaining troops either surrendered or just faded into the woodwork. The sudden freedom and realization that the 50+ year long war was over made just about everyone cut loose. Liz talked to Cynthia and Charlie during the partying and told them that the Granolith would be able to transport them back to Earth; its power had been augmented by being on its home world again. It would not have had the energy to do that before—it would have had to have gone with them as it came here. They could take letters and messages with them. Liz told them that she had no idea what they would be doing next; at the moment, it seemed that most here wanted Max to take the throne; she hoped that it would be a temporary thing, and that in a year or so, he could abdicate, and they could go home. But no one knew how things would shake out. Of course, her motive for staying would be to see if she could have children. And she also had to admit that aging a few years would be a good thing as well.

The next day, things finally settled down as everyone was sleeping off the massive celebration. Liz and Max had stayed on Antar in the Palace as that seemed to be what everyone expected. They had had their own quiet and personal celebration. Max was still partially in shock at how quickly it had all happened. Just 5 days after arriving and here, he was expected to rule the planet at age 17. Liz knew how worried he was that he would not be up to the job and made it a point to constantly reassure him.

The others were scattered all over the palace and happy that it was all over as well. Of course, they realized that in some respects, the really hard part was just beginning—putting together a working government and starting to heal the wounds left raw after over 50 years of fighting.

Bright and early that morning, Max had the Granolith move to its customary position next to the Palace. Hundreds of thousands of people gathered all over the city as the Granolith rose slowly and moved quietly and simply to where it belonged. At that point, Max and the rebel leaders and Lord Lanar met in the throne room. The Rebels made it clear that He was King and that was that. Lord Lanar told Max just to accept things as they are and just work through it. Max then addressed the group.

"After more than 50 years of a civil war, and the deaths and damage caused, we need to bring the people of Antar together. I will proclaim a general amnesty to all troops of Kivar who have surrendered; subject to of course any future investigations into war crimes and other abuses. But the rank and file should not be persecuted if possible. We need to heal. First off, we need to make sure that basic services are operational, that there is sufficient food and fuel available for the needs of the people. What comes after that, we can discuss and decide."

So the hard work began. It was decided that Kivar would remain in the Palace Dungeon guarded by the Rebel Commanders most trusted people. His trial would be sometime in the future when things had fully settled down. Not that there was much dispute over what the verdict would be or his fate. Max appointed the Rebel Commander as acting Prime Minister; and began to look around for people to help him out. That took most of the day. That evening, it was decided to send Charlie and Cynthia back to Earth to let their friends and family know things were going well. They of course took a lot of messages and letters with them.

Charlie and Cynthia materialized right in the chamber where the Granolith had been. Charlie was surprised when Cynthia's cell phone actually worked. She called Joe of course and found that he was still in town. He told them he would be out in about an hour to pick them up. He then called the Sheriff and was told that he would be escorted there to make sure no one got curious. The Sheriff then started to make the calls to the families.

Jeff and Nancy were in tears that the whole thing had ended so quickly and so well. They had understood that it was likely that Max would have to stay for a while, and of course they knew that Liz wanted to see if she could have children. But at least the war was over.

Diane and Phillip were so relieved that they just sat and held hands. They had decided that if it was at all possible, they were going to visit Antar to be with their children.

The Sheriff and Amy celebrated that evening by announcing their engagement. Jeff and Nancy had invited all concerned to the Crashdown for a party—they had closed the Diner that evening claiming that some repairs were needed. While the House was normally the place to do such, this time it seemed right to have the party at the place it all began. The Whitman's also came by, as did Joe and the Immortals and Watchers.

Duncan was very pleased by the account of his student's exploits. Methos tweaked him about getting an even bigger head by training the one who took down a dictator. Amanda was interested in visiting Antar as well just out of curiosity and questioned Cynthia closely. While she certainly did not want to stay long enough to lose her immortality, the recent data given by the Granolith indicated that a short visit would not cause any harm. Grace was very curious as well and of course wanted to know what kind of medical technology was available there. Not to mention being able to converse with the Granolith. Joe told Cynthia that it was up to her whether she wanted to go back or not; as far as he was concerned, only on earth was it up to the watchers to watch.

The next week went by quickly on Antar as life began to return to pre-war normal for most of the population. Much rebuilding needed to be done, and of course the refugees on Granular wanted to come home; most of them anyway, a few chose to stay. Max found himself buried in meetings every day, and the rest of the group got dragged in helping with the details. Michael busied himself with the details involving the surrenders of Kivar's troops and making sure that any suspected war criminals were kept in custody while the rest were given parole. Kyle, as a cop's son, was helping him. Alex was still working on refining his devices. Maria was looking at the refugee situation and trying to see to it that any war orphans were being looked after. Isabel and Tess were looking at remaking the private rooms of the palace so as to be prepared for a long stay if necessary. Liz and Courtney decided to take a tour of the city and check it out.

The tour turned into a kind of triumphal procession since the word had gotten out right away that Liz was the one that had taken down Kivar in a sword fight and humiliated him in the process. The congratulations and adulation embarrassed Liz. Courtney told her to enjoy it while it lasted since as the Queen, in time, she would find opposition and strife soon enough. They were able to get a good picture of the condition of the city and listened to accounts about what was going on in the countryside. It seemed to be going about as well as expected. One thing that disturbed Liz was the beginning of reprisals against Kivar's collaborators. She had no problem with those that profited from the war getting taken down; it was the ones who just went along to survive that worried her.

They were on the outskirts of the city when the group that was escorting her and Courtney stopped and the Rebel LT told her that there was trouble ahead and that they should take another road. Liz asked what was going on, and the somewhat embarrassed Lt told her that it appeared that there were some reprisals going on. Liz told him that they would investigate this. Over his objections the group moved forward.

They found a few families—with women and young children and a couple of elderly—being shoved down the street by an angry mob. Liz stepped forward and raised her sword—a sword that had already become famous in the city and on all of Antar. Immediately she was recognized and the shouts of "Long Live Queen Elizabeth" peeled out.

Liz lowered her sword and raised her hand. The crowd got quiet. "These people you are pushing out of town—what is their crime?"

"Collaborators—they obeyed Kivar and lived well!"

"What precisely did they do?"

At that, suddenly there was quiet and some shuffling, and Liz gently moved towards the frightened group and told the crowd.

"We must heal and learn to forgive. We must be better than Kivar and his cronies. We must show we are better. Those who truly profited will be punished and punished severely. But you must not abuse all that might have merely tried to get along and survive. We must not rush to judgment—we must be right. Now escort these people back to their home." She then looked around and by random motioned several in the crowd forward. She asked for their names and then told them that they would be responsible for this group—keep them in their homes but make sure that they were not harmed pending a formal investigation.

"We will do things right. We will have honest investigations and honest trials that all will see. No hidden courts or secret so called Law and Order. No vigilantes. I trust you here to do things right."

The crowd was uncertain but gradually a cheer grew and grew. "Long Live Queen Elizabeth and the New Royal family of Antar!"

Liz got back to the palace just before dark to find out word of her exploits had gotten out, and that in many places in Antaris and indeed all over the planet, her words and orders were being followed. Max took her in his arms and told her that he was so proud of her—she had accomplished more to bind the world's wounds in that one incident then everything everyone else had done all day. Courtney told Max that escorting Liz was a full time job and she wanted a pay raise. That got a big laugh from all present.

Max then told Liz that their formal coronation ceremony would come that next week. The High Priest and High Priestess of Antar that had been in exile with the rest of the loyalists on Granular would return that next day and would plan the ceremony that would place the crowns on their heads. Max told her that it looked like they would probably be stuck here for at least a few years. He wanted to ensure a stable democracy, but it was looking like the People would want a Constitutional Monarchy. But he thought that in a few years, he would be able to quietly let it go. At least he hoped so. Liz told him that no matter what, she would be by his side. And anyway, if they wanted children, the only way was to stay.

That next morning, Liz felt the need to do her KATA. So outside the Palace on the main grounds, she positioned herself and began. She found that since it had been several days, she needed to concentrate better and tuned everything out but her movements.

She did not notice the gathering crowd. The site of the beautiful petite young woman moving so gracefully, wielding the sword that had taken down the dictator, was irresistible to many. Max had gotten involved in one of the endless meetings, but Michael and the rest watched from the windows of the main dining hall. Maria looked at the gathering crowd and remarked that Liz was putting on quite a show and that she probably did not realize what the overall effect would have. Isabel agreed and said that if Liz wanted the Monarchy to fade away, this was NOT the way to do it. Tess shook her head and agreed as well. Michael pointed out that she appeared totally oblivious to the crowd around her and that that effect was even more telling.

Max got out of the meeting and saw his friends and family at the windows and walked over to see what was going on that so held their attention. He saw his Queen and Mate doing here KATA in front of a huge and growing crowd both on the grounds and outside watching through the ornamental old metal fence. He shook his head and started down the stairs to see her.

Liz had just finished doing the KATA for the second time (she felt she needed to) and looked up, and was astonished at the crowd watching her—she had not noticed at all. Then it parted as Max came through with the calls of "Hail the King of Antar" and "Long Live the Queen, who took down Kivar!" Liz put her sword in the scabbard that she had at her side and walked into Max's embrace, and then kissed him soundly to the uproarious approval of the crowd. Max put his arm around her and faced the crowd and raised his hand. The silence was immediate.

"People of Antar, you have just seen your Queen do what she does every morning—practice her sword skills. The Skills that took down Kivar." The Crowd cheered again. Max waved and moved with Liz back into the palace and the crowd dispersed.

Max scolded Liz—if they wanted the Monarchy to fade away, this was NOT how to do it. She blushed and realized he was right. They were steadily painting themselves in a corner. He with his work rebuilding the planet, and the rest of them doing hard work there as well. Now she just perpetuated the accounts of the final battle.

The next day the Granolith contacted the special receiving unit that it had made and left with the Sheriff at his home—it had been taken by Charlie and presented to him when they got back to Antar. This way, the group on Antar could stay in contact. The one problem was that the Granolith had to initiate contact—the device was nowhere near powerful enough to send to Antar. It told the Sheriff that the coronation ceremony would take place in 5 days, and that they wanted their families there since not only Max and Liz would be crowned, but Isabel and Tess as well. Michael was luckily exempt from that situation which made him quite happy.

At the house that next night, they all met and agreed that the whole crowd would come. Duncan, Methos, Amanda, Grace, Joe, Cynthia, Charlie and the families. They would leave in two days.

The arrival of the group from Roswell at the granolith caused quite a stir. Since there was always a crowd there and the Granolith was always in full view, it was not something that could be hidden.

Duncan promptly told Liz that they needed to spar so she would not get rusty—she rolled her eyes and told them that they would do it inside in the main banquet hall—the tables moved out would give them plenty of room. Amanda right away wanted to see what Liz would be wearing for the ceremony as well as the rest. Grace buttonholed the Granolith and started peppering it with questions. Methos of course went to check out the local beer situation. Cynthia parked herself in the banquet room with Joe to take notes on the sparing. Charlie decided to see how the training was going on as regards the crossbows he had developed. He had also brought a couple with him to compare. The families got themselves situated in their rooms and started to look around. There would be a formal banquet that evening.

The day of the coronation dawned sunny and mild—perfect weather. Max had decreed that the huge square in front of the Government Building would be where the ceremony would take place so that the maximum number of people could see it. It would be broadcasted all over the planet and on Granular.

Amanda and Nancy fussed with Liz's coronation gown. It was a deep blue and classically cut and Liz looked lovely. Nancy had quietly asked Liz about a possible marriage ceremony and Liz told her that there really was none—once the King or Queen or Princess or Prince chose their mate that was that. The coronation would just place it in stone. Jeff was a little disappointed that he would not be able to walk Liz down the aisle of her wedding, but Liz told him that Max wanted to visit Earth and marry her there—but it would probably be some months if not longer before they could leave even for a short time.

The procession from the Palace to the Government house—about two blocks long—started promptly at noon. The High Priest and Priestess led carrying two main crowns; their acolytes following behind with the other two. Then came Max and Liz, followed by Isabel and Tess. The rest of the group folloed right behind, and various dignitaries led by Lord Lanar were next. The cheers of the massive crowd just grew.

Tess was crowned first as Royal Princess of Antar. Then came Isabel as First Royal Princess of Antar. Then the roar of the crowd increased even more as Liz was crowned Queen of Antar. Finally Max was crowned King of Antar. He then stood before them all and gave a short speech.

"We grew up far away on a different world not knowing who we were and what we were supposed to do. Now we know. And we pledge all that we are and ever will be to the peace and happiness of Antar." The crowd went nuts.

Maria looked around. "It's gonna be hard to top this!" 


End file.
